Double Arts
by TheMostOriginalPenName
Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they never expected such a result. The chance meeting between Naruto and a white haired girl. Their meeting is the start of the legend of Double Arts. AU. Story starts before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC
1. If you let go, I'll die!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double arts. They belong to their respective owners.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: A little crossover fic I thought up after reading the manga Double Arts. I'm truly disappointed it ended so fast and this story just began to form in my head. General ideas are taken from the manga Double Arts. This story will follow the Naruto manga's storyline, but I intend to add little original arcs to make it more enjoyable to write. Hopefully I don't make the original OC too much of a Mary Sue.

**Double Arts**

Chapter 1: If you let go, I'll die!

"This is the town right?" Naruto yelled out confidently, he was standing in the front of the group, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi walked behind him. Sasuke had a brooding face as usual, Sakura was trying her best to get him to talk, Kakashi was reading that smut of his as always. "Let's go kick some bandit's ass," Naruto said as he prepared to run off, only to get pulled back by his collar as Kakashi held him back.

"Naruto, don't be so hasty, do you not remember what the client said? Bandits are hiding within the village, if you run in screaming your heads off you'll alert them and they might grab hostages," Kakashi said calmly. "We're going in stealthily and we'll split up, you remember what the client said, each bandits will be wearing a shirt with the crimson dragon emblem embedded onto it, if possible only knock them out, we aren't certain if they forced the village people to wear it," Kakashi explained. "Stealth is the highest priority, do not alert the bandits, I am talking specifically to you Naruto," Kakashi said, bending down and staring straight into Naruto's eyes.

"What, I can be stealthy if I want, I'm the number one prankster in Konoha," Naruto fumed.

With a grin Kakashi said, "Yes you are, okay team, we're moving in," as he shut his book with one hand, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura leapt off in a blur, as they stealthily entered the town. "Now, let's hope for the best," Kakashi said as he too entered the village stealthily.

-

_I can count five roaming the streets, how many more are there, should I follow them, or should I take them out now_. Sasuke thought, he was on the roof of a building out of sight, there were five bandits walking down the streets swaying left and right, as they each held one another for support, in their hands were a bottle with the kanji 'Sake'.

-

_One bandit, he's alone, should I take him out and henge into him?_ Sakura thought, she was peaking from the roof of a rundown building. _This village, it's so quiet, are the people hiding in their houses? Or have they all run away?_ Sakura thought while biting her lips nervously.

-

"Damn that Kakashi-sensei, why did he have to say that to me only, he made me totally not cool in front of Sakura-chan, I'll show him I can be stealthy if I need to, I'll take out more bandits than that damn Sasuke," Naruto muttered quietly to himself, he was on all four staring down into the street at three bandits.

-

"They're rather weak, not that I expected anything more," Kakashi said with a bored tone, around him were six bandits all knocked unconscious. "I shouldn't leave their body lying on the floor, **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**," Kakashi said, as six clones popped into existence. "Please tie up the bodies and hide them some where out of sight," Kakashi said to his clones as he leapt back onto the building.

-

"Five down, it seems there aren't any bandits hiding in the buildings," Sasuke said, the five drunken bandits lay around him, he was in an alley way, apparently the drunken bandits had enough discipline to vomit in the alley way instead of the streets. Pulling out some wire from his tool bag, Sasuke wrapped it tightly around the five bandits before he leapt back into hiding.

-

Sakura dragged a bandit into the alley way, as she performed a simple hand seal, becoming an exact replica of the bandit unconscious in front of her. "I hope Naruto won't be stupid and attack me," Sakura said out loud.

-

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**," Naruto whispered quietly, as three clones appeared around him. "We're ambushing them," Naruto muttered to his clones, as he waved a hand over at the three bandits.

Two clones leapt to the other side of the streets, and one clone on each side ran ahead in front of the bandits. Leaping down from their position on the roof, the four Naruto surrounded the bandits in an instant. The bandits became alert when they saw two exact same looking blondes appeared in front of them, as they grabbed their weapons and held a clumsy defensive stance. "Who the hell are you?" One of the bandits yelled.

"I'm Konoha's number one most surprising ninja, the future Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto, you best remember that name!" Naruto yelled as he alerted the bandits of two more Naruto behind them. All four Naruto leapt at the bandits, and in an instant they easily fell, as Naruto made quick work of them due to their lack of training. "Haha, three down at once, I bet Sasuke can't do something like this," Naruto said cockily.

"Hey, I think I heard someone yelling back here," A voice yelled from around the corner.

"Oh shit," Naruto said when several bandits ran into the scene and saw him.

"Hey who the hell are you? What did you do brat?" The bandit yelled when he saw the three bandits lying on the floor. "Damn it, those damn villagers hired ninjas, run back to the boss, we have to report this to him," The bandit yelled, alerting the back up with him.

"We got to stop them," Naruto yelled to his clones, as they ran after the bandits who made a run for it.

-

"Those damn bandits are making a ruckus again," A white haired girl said, she had short white hair, there was some hair sticking out from the back of her head like bed hair, her face was deathly pale, her face was cute, but she looked unbelievably sick, with dark bags under her piercing red eyes. Her pale lips were parted slightly, panting for air, her two fangs were slightly pronounced, longer than normal. She was fairly short and slim. Her body was unbelievably weak, as shown by how wobbly she walked, her hands supporting her movement by pushing the wall for support. Coughing a few times, the girl felt a wave of pain shoot through her body, causing her to collapse onto her knees. Holding her hands to cover her mouth, the girl began to have a fit of coughing, her body was shivering, convulsing in pain. Removing her hands from her mouth, the girl could see blood on her hands. _Damn, is my time up? Am I going to die now?_ The girl thought to herself, as her hands dropped onto the floor to support herself, a wave of pain shooting through her body as her fit of coughing returned. She could feel herself growing faint, as the pain erupted through her body; the coughing gave her trouble breathing for air, the girl could hear noises beside her, struggling slowly to turn her head, she saw a bunch of people running by her. She heard a loud voice yelling after the people, the voice caused her head to explode in pain, it was loud and very annoying, she thought as she slowly felt her consciousness slipping.

-

"Hey you damn bastards, stop running!" Naruto yelled after the bandits, he and his three clones were running after the bandits. There were four bandits running, he was catching up due to his superior speed, but due to the bandits knowledge of the village they were able to slip into the alleys causing him to lose sight of them. The bandits made the mistake of running into an open street and in just a bit Naruto would have caught up to them. Suddenly the sight of a white haired girl his age caused the real Naruto to stop, as he quickly ran up to the girl, he heard her coughing violently, her body was shivering, he noticed splatter of blood on the floor. Running up beside the girl, Naruto grabbed her shoulder, lifting her up to face him, "Are you alright, hey, can you hear me?" Naruto yelled as he shook the girl. She was pale, a trail of blood coming down her mouth, she seemed to be almost unconscious.

_Who the hell is this idiot, who the hell shakes a sick person like this_? The girl thought to herself angrily, but she was too tired to yell, she felt herself enter a world of pain like never before as the boy violently shook her around. _If I survive, I will kill whoever the hell this is, if not I'll beat him half to dead_. The girl thought angrily.

"Hey, can you hear me?" Naruto asked, as he reached a hand and grabbed the girl's, suddenly the two felt a strange pulse, the girl's violent fit of coughing stopped and she felt her strength slowly returning.

_What is this? I'm fine_? The girl thought, as she felt bits of her strength returning. Struggling slowly to turn her head, the girl saw a spiky haired blonde boy around her age; he had six whisker marks on his face, three on each side of his cheek.

_She's cute, like Sakura-chan_. Naruto thought with a faint blush as he stared at the girl's face. Shaking his head a bit to rid the thought, "Are you alright?" Naruto asked worriedly, as he let the girl's hands go. Suddenly the girl returned to a violent coughing fit, causing Naruto to widen in confusion.

_It's back again, what is going on_? The girl thought, as she struggled to breathe yet again. _This boy's hands, could it be?_ The girl thought, as she struggled to move her arms, and with all her strength the girl grabbed onto Naruto's hands causing her violent coughing fit to stop. Mustering all she could the girl spoke, "Don't let go."

Naruto was surprised when the girl grabbed his hands, he was more surprised when she spoke 'Don't let go', and while he was confused Naruto did as the girl told as he held onto her hands.

The girl felt her strength returning and minutes later she felt good enough to sit up. "Who are you?" The girl asked.

"Me, I'm Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage of Konoha," Naruto announced loudly causing a shot of pain in the girl's head.

_So loud_. The girl thought to herself. _I see. He is a ninja of the hidden village of the leaf_. The girl thought to herself.

"Damn it, I have to catch those bandits, I have to go, I'm glad you're okay," Naruto said as he stood up and prepared to run.

"Don't go," The girl yelled holding onto Naruto's hands tightly.

Naruto stopped in his track, the sickly girl was unbelievably strong. "What do you mean? I have to stop those bandits," Naruto said.

"You can't let go of my hands, otherwise I'll die," The girl stated simply, causing Naruto to stare at her in disbelief.

"What are you talking about?" Naruto said, staring at the girl with a 'are you crazy' look.

"I will show you, but you must not run away," The girl said, as she let go of Naruto's hands, suddenly the coughing fit returned, as she began to shiver as pain erupted through every part of her body.

Naruto was shocked, but he quickly made a grab for the girl's hands again, stopped her coughing. "What's going on?" Naruto said confused.

"I don't know, but if I let you go, I will without a doubt die," The girl stated.

"But the bandits," Naruto said out loud. "Damn it," Naruto yelled as he lifted the girl bridal style and began to run after the bandits.

"What are you doing, let me down," The girl yelled, but Naruto ignored her and ran after his clones and the bandits.

-

"This must be the bandit's head quarters, and this must be their leader, mission accomplish," Kakashi said with a grin, around him there were about twenty bandits. Creating several clones, Kakashi sent the clones to tie up the bandits while he himself walked out of the headquarter. Kakashi saw a bandit running up to him and as he prepared to knock the bandit out it dispelled in a puff of smoke revealing Sakura waving at him.

"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura yelled as she stopped before him with a huff, panting softly for breathe.

"Yo, I assume you went through every part of your area?" Kakashi said with a wave.

"Yes, I took out ten bandits," Sakura replied.

The two of them saw two bandits running up to the head quarters, "Boss, we have trouble boss, there are leaf ninjas in the village," The two bandits yelled out at the top of their voice.

The two watched with a sigh when they saw two Naruto clones running angrily after the two bandits. "Come back here you cowards," The Naruto clones yelled.

"What is he doing?" Sakura said sighing with a face palm.

"Number one most surprising ninja indeed," Kakashi said.

Suddenly Sasuke appeared and knocked the two bandits out with a chop to the neck, "What are you doing dope," Sasuke muttered.

"Wah, Sasuke! Those two were my preys!" Naruto clones yelled.

"Feh, a dope like you really can't do the job right," Sasuke said turning towards Sakura and Kakashi and walked up to them.

The Naruto clones were fuming as they stomped after Sasuke. "Sasuke, I see you are done with your area as well," Kakashi said.

"Yes, I took out around twenty," Sasuke replied.

"Kyahh, Sasuke-kun is so cool and strong," Sakura said with a squeal.

The three stared at the two Naruto in which both popped out of existence. "Wait, if they're both clones, where is the real Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"I can see the dope right there, is that a girl in his arms?" Sasuke said, pointing towards the Naruto running towards them.

"Sasukeeee, you bastard, you took my bandits!!" Naruto yelled as he ran up to the group angrily, one of his hands were being held onto by the white haired girl, the girl was plugging the ear closest to Naruto's mouth with her other arm. When Naruto stopped before the group, he let the girl onto her feet, the girl looked rather annoyed.

"Who is that Naruto?" Kakashi asked with a smile. _That pure white hair, and those red eyes, she couldn't be…_

"Why are you holding her hand, you idiot, Naruto," Sakura asked.

"Before that, Sasuke!" Naruto said angrily, glaring daggers at Sasuke.

"Mhn, a dope like you who can't even take out two mere bandits shouldn't have the right to talk," Sasuke said arrogantly, causing Naruto to fume. The girl had a slightly irritated look on her face, as she tried to block out Naruto loud yelling with one hand.

"Naruto stop harassing Sasuke-kun and tell us who that is," Sakura said angrily.

"I don't know, I found her lying sick on the streets back there," Naruto replied. "I don't know why, but if I don't hold onto her hand she'll die," Naruto said.

"Who the hell will believe that?!" Sakura yelled as she tried to punch Naruto, only for the girl to grab her fist mid punch, stopping her from punching Naruto. "You," Sakura said surprised, the girl was stronger than she looked.

"I wouldn't do that, I don't want to go flying as well," The girl said with narrowed eyes, her piercing eyes caused Sakura to flinch slightly taking a step back.

"Sakura, Sasuke, go pick up all the bandits and gather them together, Naruto and the little miss there, come with me, we need to have a private talk," Kakashi said seriously he sounded rather urgent too.

Sasuke and Sakura rarely seeing Kakashi this serious nodded, as they leapt off to collect the tied up bandits. "You two, come with me, we need to go to some place private," Kakashi said, as he, Naruto and the girl walked off to some place where no one was around.

"First off, I wish to know your name," Kakashi said pointing towards the white haired girl.

"Yuki, Hikari Yuki," Yuuki replied.

"Yuki, a fitting name," Kakashi said with a smile. _Could I be wrong? Could she not be of that clan_? Kakashi thought. "What do you mean when you say you can't let go of her hands, Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"Ah well," Naruto said.

"If he lets go, I will die," Yuki replied.

"Die?" Kakashi asked calmly.

"Well, I will die, for some reason, he is stopping me from dying, in fact holding onto him is making me healthier than I've been in quite a while," Yuki explained. Lifting up both hers and Naruto's connected hands, Yuki lets go of Naruto's hands. Suddenly her coughing fit returns, as she collapsed onto her knees, unable to move, as she convulsed with pain. Naruto hurriedly grabs her hand again, stopping it.

"I see," Kakashi said thoughtfully. _This is the curse I've heard about, could she have had a name change?_ Kakashi thought. "Could you be perhaps, related to a clan referred to as vampires?" Kakashi asked.

"What?! A vampire?!" Naruto said in surprise.

"Yes, my mother has told me that in the past, she said her parents belonged to that clan," Yuki replied.

"Wait, wait, what's happening here?" Naruto asked. "What are you talking about Kakashi-sensei, she's a vampire?" Naruto asked.

"She's not a vampire, that's something that only exists in myths, but a clan was once known throughout the ninja world, a clan the world referred to as vampires," Kakashi explained.

"I've never heard of it," Naruto said smugly regaining his cool.

"Of course, that's because the clan was wiped out and destroyed from history," Kakashi said in a grave tone.

"What!" Naruto said in surprise, as he turned and glanced at Yuki who was staring at the floor. "But she's still alive, isn't she?" Naruto said.

"Yes, that is why I am so surprise, the Ketsuki clan was said to have been completely wiped out, no known survivor."

"Why were they destroyed, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Well-," Kakashi began before being interrupted.

"Because they were feared," Yuki began.

"Feared?" Naruto said.

"Yes, the Ketsuki clan was feared throughout the world, they were given the name vampire, because of their abilities, more specificly **Dorein**," Kakashi said.

"Abilities?" Naruto asked.

"**Dorein** and **Yuukai**," Yuki said softly.

"Yes, the abilities that made a Ketsuki so feared, the move **Dorein**," Kakashi began. "Legends state that the founding members of the clan of Ketsuki made a pact with a tailed beast, in return for power they will serve the demon. The demon granted their wishes, bestowing onto the founders enchanted strength, speed, stamina, and two special abilities, **Dorein **and **Yuukai**," Kakashi continued. "The founders became strong, and in their own lust for power, they betrayed the demon. When the founders broke the pact, the demon cursed their bloodline for eternity, a curse that will deteriorate their body with age and if the curse was not stopped or slowed they would without a doubt die at the age of six." "The founders were dying, but they realized that with **Dorein** they could slow the curse and prolong their lives." "The clan of Ketsuki survived and they continued to survive until fifty years ago, when the five great nations combined their forces and wiped them out from existence."

"What is **Dorein**, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"**Dorein**, is what made the Ketsuki so feared, it is a move that drains all chakra from a person, killing them, and this chakra is used to prolong the lives of a Ketsuki," Kakashi replied.

"What!" Naruto yelled in fear, as he glanced in fear towards Yuki.

"Do not worry, I have never used the ability before," Yuki said.

"But you know the move," Kakashi said simply.

"But I will never use it, I promised my mother before she died," Yuki replied in a serious voice.

"How did your mother, a Ketsuki survive fifty years ago, you look no older than thirteen, it's impossible for you to be alive now," Kakashi said. "You say you've never used **Dorein**, but it's impossible for you to be alive if that is the case."

"My mother is the daughter of two Ketsuki members who forsaken the clan when they could no longer stand their ways, giving birth to my mother," Yuki began. "My mother met my father, a human shinobi, by using **Dorein** once every few days on my father my mother was able to prolong her death, giving birth to me, I only have half of Ketsuki blood within me," Yuki continued before Kakashi interrupted.

"I see, and thus your curse takes twice as long before taking effect, but **Dorein** only slows the curse down, it does not heal it, you will without a doubt die even if you use **Dorein** on a person." Kakashi said.

"Yes, but for some reason, by holding onto this person's hands my curse stops taking effect," Yuki said as she held up hers and Naruto's hands.

"That could be because Naruto holds the nine-tailed beast, Kyuubi within him," Kakashi explained.

Yuki's eyes widened in shock before saying with surprise, "Him, a jinchuriki? This weakling?" Yuki said, causing Naruto to turn to her angrily.

"Hey, I'm strong, I'm the future hokage of Konoha," Naruto yelled.

"You seem to know a bit about Jinchuriki," Kakashi said.

"My mother once told me, that the only way to suppress the curse is to obtain the blessing of a tailed beast or to come in contact with a Jinchuriki, a human with a demon sealed within them," Yuki said.

"I see, that explains a lot, but are you willing to hold her hands like that, Naruto?" Kakashi asked seriously.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" Naruto said simply.

"You don't understand how serious this situation is, Naruto," Kakashi began gravely, causing Naruto to become alert. "This isn't as simple as you think, if you hold her hands you will never ever be able to remain as a shinobi, you will be unable to fulfill your dreams to become hokage, that is the choice you are making here, give up your dreams and save her life, or give up her life to capture your dream," Kakashi said seriously, Naruto's eyes was wide when he realized what Kakashi was forcing him to decide, to give up his dreams to save a life, or to give up a life to keep his dreams.

Yuki stared with eyes hardened; she was not going to show any emotion before Naruto, she had prepared herself mentally for death. Naruto glanced towards Yuki from the corner of his eyes, he noticed the emotionless look on her face, but he noticed in the depths of her eyes she was prepared to die.

Smirking, Naruto said confidently, "Kakashi-sensei, who do you think I am?" "I will save Yuki's life, but I will never give up my dream, I will become Hokage, even if I have to hold onto her hands forever," Naruto stated as he lifted up Yuki's arms confidently. "This is my way of the ninja, I make up my own rules, don't think I can't become a ninja just because I have to drag her along with me, that's why, Yuki, we will fight together, I will keep you alive, and you will help me become Hokage," Naruto said staring straight into Yuki's red eyes which lit up in shock.

"Of course," Yuki said as she stared at the smiling boy before her. _This boy, he's more mature than I first thought, or perhaps you could call him immature_. Yuki thought to herself.

Kakashi chuckled, and Naruto and Yuki swore they saw him blushing with a perverted grin underneath his face mask, "Well, you know, since you guys can't separate, you'll have to do everything together, eat, bath, sleep," Kakashi said with amusement evident on his voice, as the two blushed heavily and stared at each other.

"WHAT!" They yelled in unison.

"Yes, this is the decision you guys have made, enjoy the rest of your life together, make sure you don't do something you aren't supposed to until you're old enough," Kakashi said with a perverted grin.

"Shut up Kakashi-sensei, I'm not a pervert like you!" Naruto yelled embarrassed.

"If you try anything, I'll beat the crap out of you," Yuki said with a blushing face.

"I won't, I'm not a pervert," Naruto stated with a blush.

"Well," Kakashi said with a pause and a clap. "Let's get back to Sasuke and Sakura, I'm sure they have all the bandits tied up," Kakashi finished as he began walking away.

Naruto and Yuki stared at their connected hands and sighed, the rest of their lives together, Naruto was somewhat regretting his decision now, what if Sakura-chan misunderstood.

When the three returned to the bandit head quarter Sasuke and Sakura had already rounded up the bandits with help from a bunch of villagers who were hiding inside their house. "Thank you for saving us," A man yelled, as they noticed Kakashi, Naruto and Yuki approaching.

"You are the mayor of the village, I believe?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes, how did you know?" The mayor asked.

"Your son was the one who hired us, you two bear resemblance to each other, I simply took a guess," Kakashi explained.

"Yes, Hirose did it did he, will he be coming back?" The mayor asked.

"Yes, we will be meeting with him on our way back, we will tell him to return," Kakashi replied.

"Thank you," The mayor said with a bow.

"We will leave the bandits here for you to treat as you will, we will be going now," Kakashi said.

"Why not join us for a feast, it is the least we can do for our saviours," The mayor suggested.

"That sounds nice, but we must return to the village in haste, I hope you the best of luck in rebuilding your village, Team 7 we're leaving now," Kakashi spoke, calling his team together, Sasuke and Sakura walked up to him, but Kakashi noticed Naruto being dragged by Yuki to a group of children.

"Yuki-oneesama, do you really have to leave, stay with us!" One of the little girls said with teary eyes.

"Don't go, Onee-sama," Another little boy said.

"You sure are popular," Naruto dead panned.

"I'm sorry, I must go with them," Yuki explained.

"Why? Stay with us, Yuki-oneesama," Another boy spoke up. "Could it be because of him? Are you leaving because of him?" The boy asked pointing angrily at Naruto.

"Well, in a way yes," Yuki replied stupidly.

"Hey, don't drag me into this," Naruto said.

"Why you, why are you stealing Yuki-oneesama from us?" A little girl said angrily at Naruto.

"Could it be, could he be your-," A little boy said as he held up his pinkie. "Onee-sama?"

"No, he/she is not!" Naruto and Yuki both yelled with blushing face as Naruto stared fearfully at Sakura who wasn't even paying attention, with a sigh of relief.

"But onee-sama is holding his hands, you must be going out!" The boy said pointing to their hands.

"This is something else, it's not what you think," Yuki tried to explain. "Please understand me, I don't want to leave, but I must, that's why, please don't stop me, I promise I'll return to visit you guys," Yuki said eyes teary.

"Geeze, hey, I promise we will return to visit and I never break a promise, okay?" Naruto spoke up, as he held out a pinkie. The kids nodded tearfully as one of them walked up and pinkie swears with Naruto. "We'll be back!" Naruto said as he and Yuki ran up to follow the rest of Team 7.

"So she's coming with us?" Sakura said sounding slightly irritated, most likely still angry about earlier when Yuki stopped her punch. "And why are you two still holding hands?" Sakura said annoyed pointing to their hands.

_Ahh Sakura-chan, you do care about me, you're jealous!_ Naruto thought happily as tears fell down his cheek. _You really care about me more than that bastard._

_This idiot, he's so obvious_. Yuki said glancing at the Naruto who was crying in happiness. _How he's in love with a girl like her I have no idea_. Yuki thought with a sweat drop, remembering Sakura's attempt to knock the lights out of Naruto. _No matter how you look at it, she has a serious crush on that brooding boy over there_. Yuki thought glancing at Sasuke. _Although I admit, I would take him over this idiot any day. At least he understands the word 'silence'._ Yuki thought with a sigh.

Team 7 plus one girl arrived at the gates of Konoha as the sun was setting. After getting clearance from the guards, they strolled into the village, Yuki's eyes lit up as she looked around like a little child. This was the first time she had ever been in a huge hidden village like Konohagakure. "Let's hurry and report to the old man, I want to eat ramen!" Naruto whined.

"Ramen?" Yuki asked.

"You don't know what ramen is…" Naruto said staring at Yuki in such a frightening way she was almost tempted to let go of his hands. "Ramen is a gift from god, it is the best thing to ever exist in this world," Naruto said, drools running down his mouth.

_So weird, I'm stuck with him for the rest of my life?_ Yuki thought with a sweat drop. "Yes, I'm sure it must be great," Yuki lied.

"I sensed a hint of lying in your voice just now!" Naruto yelled.

"No, no, you must be imagining things," Yuki said inching away as much as she could from the ramen-crazed Naruto.

"They're close, aren't they, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked glancing at the bickering pair behind them.

"It's not my problem," Sasuke simply said.

Sakura glanced back at the two, "How can anyone fall in love with an idiot like Naruto? After just meeting him, they're already holding hands and not letting go," Sakura said pausing with a sigh as she glanced at their intertwined hands. "I pity her," Sakura said before chasing after Sasuke.

"Oi, old man, we're back!" Naruto said slamming open the door of the Hokage office, Sakura was face palming her own face in disbelief, Sasuke was the same moody self, Kakashi was reading his smut, while Yuki was glancing around curiously.

"Naruto and team 7, I see the mission went well," Sarutobi spoke up glancing at the group before him. "And I see you brought someone else along," Sarutobi said, he noticed Naruto holding onto the girl's hands but he decided to not say anything about it just yet.

_That old man, he is the Hokage, he is the strongest man in this village?_ Yuki thought to herself. _He seems like a gentle old man, is he really the man that Naruto wants to succeed?_

"Sasuke, Sakura, you're dismissed, leave the debriefing to us," Kakashi said, Sasuke and Sakura nodded and left the room.

"What? What about me sensei? I want to go eat ramen," Naruto complained.

"Naruto, I need you here to explain the situation," Kakashi said.

"Kakashi, I'm assuming it has to do with that girl, she is part of the Ketsuki isn't she," Sarutobi asked, he had come to that conclusion when he saw the white hair and red eyes.

"Yes, she is, Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied respectfully.

_He's sharp and just as knowledgeable as Kakashi, Kakashi also seem to have a great deal of respect for this Hokage, is he really strong in reality?_ Yuki thought.

"I see, I can already see the picture, I have heard rumours of the curse being suppressed by the power of tailed beasts, I see that it is true," Sarutobi said.

"That is the case, Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied.

"If you know already, old man, can I go now?" Naruto whined.

"You may, but Naruto, in a few days I will have another apartment prepared for you, yours is too tiny to fit the two of you," Sarutobi spoke sagely, but the faint blush on his face just totally killed the effect.

_He's also a pervert! Are all Konoha men like this?_ Yuki thought in shock, glancing warily at Naruto.

"Yes! Let's go Yuki, I shall now show you the gift that is ramen," Naruto said excitedly as he ran out the door dragging Yuki with him.

"I hope they don't do anything they shouldn't," Sarutobi said.

"Oh, I've already told them so, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said.

-

"This is ramen," Naruto said dramatically, he was sitting at the Ichiraku Ramen booth, Yuki was seated right of him, Naruto's right and Yuki's left hands were between them, grasping each other's hands.

_This does smell rather good_. Yuki thought with a surprised look on her face, as the delicious aroma drifted into her nose.

"I can see that surprised look, you didn't believe me earlier!" Naruto stated. "Ichiraku ramen is the best," Naruto said confidently.

"I'm glad you feel this way, Naruto," Teuchi said with a grin. "This ones on the house since you've found yourself a pretty little girlfriend," Teuchi said.

"She/he's not my girl/boyfriend," The two of them yelled in unison with an embarrassed face.

Giggling Ayame spoke teasingly, "Really? You two seem to be pretty well matched."

"So who is she really? You haven't introduced us, I haven't seen her around the village," Teuchi asked.

"She's Hikari Yuki, she comes from a village a few hours away from here," Naruto explained.

"What did you do to get her attention, Naruto," Teuchi teased.

"I didn't do anything, if I let her go, she'll die," Naruto stated.

"My, my, Naruto, we're just teasing, that's going a bit too far," Ayame said.

"He's not joking, if he and I were to separate, I will die," Yuki explained, as she took a bite out of her ramen. "This is delicious," Yuki said with her eyes glistening, as she stared at the bowl before her. "This is without a doubt the best food I have ever tasted," Yuki said.

"See, see, I told you, if you said you hated it, I would seriously let go!" Naruto said.

_You would? Over a simple matter like this_? Yuki thought with a sweat drop.

"Hey, hey, don't change the topic, what do you mean she'll die when you let go?" Ayame and Teuchi asked seriously.

"I can't show you since she'll be in pain, but I'm not kidding, if I let her hands go, she will die," Naruto said lifting both their hands up and showing the two.

"Is that so, Yuki-chan, your bowls will always be on the house, our treat!" Ayame said.

"Thank you so much," Yuki said with a smile.

"Hey, hey, what about me old man? Your number one customer!" Naruto said.

"No way in hell, Naruto, if we did that, we'll be bankrupt in days," Teuchi said.

"Wahh, that's so unfair, I'm the one keeping her alive!" Naruto said.

"That's why we're doing something like this, I pity Yuki-chan having to stick with a loud annoying brat like you all day," Teuchi joked.

"You understand my pains, you guys are some of the best people I've ever met," Yuki said as she mockingly wiped the fake tears from her eyes.

"Hey, hey, I'm not that annoying am I?" Naruto asked.

"What do you think," The three replied in unison.

"Why are you all ganging up on me?" Naruto whined.

"Yo, Naruto, we can hear you whining out there, what's the matter?" Ino asked as she, Shikamaru, Chouji and Asuma walked into the booth. "A miso ramen for me," Ino said as she took a seat.

"A special for me," Shikamaru said as he took a seat.

"One of everything for me, Asuma-sensei is paying," Chouji said with a large grin.

"Oi, oi, don't eat all my money away," Asuma joked.

"Asuma-senseiiii, can you treat me too?" Naruto said with pleading eyes.

"Whoa, whoa, okay Naruto, don't look at me with those eyes," Asuma said with a sweat drop before Naruto's huge teary pleading eyes.

"Yes, Asuma-sensei is much better than Kakashi-sensei, you aren't cheap and a pervert," Naruto said grinning. "Now, I should dig in," Naruto said, picking up the chop sticks with his left hands clumsily. Slowly the fact dawned on him, "I can't eat with my left hand," Naruto stated slowly, causing the occupants of the booth to turn towards him.

"Than eat with your right, you idiot," Ino said from her place in the booth.

"But, but," Naruto said.

"Now that you mention it, aren't you holding the hands of that girl, Naruto?" Asuma asked, as team 10 stared at the white haired girl beside Naruto, than at their hands grasping each other in between the area between their seats.

"What? Naruto found a girlfriend?" Chouji said with surprise.

"She/he's not my boy/girlfriend," Naruto and Yuki yelled in unison. "Stop saying it at the same time as me, it makes people wonder!" They yelled again glaring at each other.

"What's going on here?" Ino asked.

"Long story short, apparently Naruto can't let go of Yuki-chan's hands, otherwise she'll die," Ayame explained.

"What are you guys, children? What kind of mushy romance crap do you think you're living in," Ino said angrily. "Die if he lets go, are you stupid?" Ino said glaring at Yuki, who glared back.

"I don't want to you know, but I have to," Yuki replied angrily.

"Hey, hey, calm down, Ino," Shikamaru said calmly.

"That kind of mushy crap shouldn't be done with someone like Naruto, that's like my dream with Sasuke," Ino said angrily.

"Hey, what the hell Ino, what do you mean by someone like Naruto," Naruto shot back angrily.

"Grr, I'll separate you two even if it means I have to beat you up, Naruto," Ino said as she pounces at Naruto and Yuki. The two quickly stood up and moved out of the booth and into the wider street.

"Hey, Ino, we're serious, stop," Naruto said as he and Yuki dodged Ino again.

"Just let go of her hand and everything will be fine," Ino said. She apparently was in an anger crazed state as she chased after the two.

"Those two seem serious, they really aren't letting go of each other, despite their horrible coordination," Shikamaru stated, as he observed Naruto and Yuki dodging Ino.

"I really think we should stop Ino," Chouji said worriedly.

"Yeah, I think you guys are right," Asuma said as he disappeared from his spot and was behind Ino in an instant, locking her arms behind her back. "Ino, stop it, they're serious about this," Asuma said as Ino seemed to return to her normal state of mind.

"Wah, what? What am I doing out here?" Ino said. "Right I heard Naruto say something very stupid and went into an angry rage," Ino said shaking her head.

"That girl is very scary," Yuki stated simply.

"Yeah, are you girls always that scary?" Naruto asked as he was punched by Yuki.

"No normal girls are like that," Yuki said.

"But why did you have to punch me?" Naruto said confused.

"I don't know," Yuki replied dragging Naruto back into the booth.

Taking their seats again, Naruto gazed longingly at the bowl before him, as he tried to clumsily eat with his left hand. "Yuki, can you feed me?" Naruto asked stupidly as he turned to stare at Yuki with teary eyes.

Yuki was about to yell at him for being stupid when she saw Naruto teary eyes longing for ramen. With a sigh, she grasped his chops sticks and began feeding him, as a river of tears streamed down his eyes as he finally got to eat ramen. Yuki was blushing, embarrassed as the rest of the people in the booth stared at the two of them with amused eyes. "Geeze, eat it yourself, I can't feed you with all these people watching. I rather die," Yuki said stuffing the rest of the ramen into Naruto's face and letting go of the chopsticks.

"No, no, go on, that was an amusing sight," Ayame teased.

"God, I can't believe you two, how mushy can you two be? Feeding each other in public?" Ino said in disbelief as she face palm.

"We, are, not, trying, to, be, mushy," Naruto and Yuki shot back word for word in unison. "Seriously, stop that!" They yelled at each other.

"How troublesome, they really seem to be unable to let go of each others arms, I think you should trust them, Ino, it's not like Naruto to lie about something like this," Shikamaru said seriously.

"If you say so, Shika, but I still have my doubts," Ino said, glancing at Naruto who was trying to lap up his ramen like a dog. "Okay, I think I believe them," Ino said sweat dropping at the sight.

"Naruto, stop that, wait till I finish, we'll switch seat and hands so you can eat," Yuki said embarrassed, as Naruto tried to eat his ramen.

Brightening up Naruto nodded, "Right I didn't think of that, hurry, I need to eat," Naruto said. "The ramen is getting cold."

Yuki hurried and finished her ramen, and than the two of them switched place, making sure to be careful and always touching. "Finally, I can eat," Naruto yelled excitedly, Yuki was resting her cheeks on her palm as she watched Naruto eat.

_How ill mannered._ Yuki thought as she watched Naruto slurp all the ramen like a mad man. Slowly the bowls of ramen began to stack up, and slowly Yuki realized what Teuchi meant when he said Naruto would cause him to go bankrupt. The boy had a bottomless pit for a stomach, or at least to ramen, and after twenty bowls Naruto finished with a sigh.

"Thank you, Asuma-sensei," Naruto said patting his stomach.

Asuma was watching, tears streaming down his cheeks as he glanced between Naruto's twenty bowl stacks and Chouji's twenty bowl stacks. "My pay check," Asuma said sadly.

"That's what you get when you decide to pay for both Chouji and Naruto, sensei, it's just troublesome," Shikamaru said knowingly.

"Let's go Yuki!" Naruto said as he happily left the booth while Asuma slowly pulled out his money, crying at his loss.

"So where do you live?" Yuki asked.

"It's just around the corner," Naruto said, walking around the corner the two went up several set of stairs until they reached a small apartment.

"This is where the future hokage lives?" Yuki said teasingly. "It's smaller than my house back in the village," Yuki said.

"I was born without parents, the old man is the one providing me with everything from his own money, I can't possibly be selfish enough to ask for more," Naruto replied seriously.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it in a bad way," Yuki said softly, she was unaware of anything about Naruto so she had just blurted out what came to mind.

"It's okay, you don't know anything about me, I won't hate you for something like this," Naruto replied. "Excuse the mess, I only sleep here, so I rarely clean it," Naruto said.

Yuki could tell, clothes were scattered all over the floor, cups of left over instant ramen were just tossed onto the floor. The place smelled strangely similar to ramen Yuki decided after a few sniffs. _How do you live in a place like this?_ Yuki thought in shock as she followed after Naruto.

"This is my bedroom," Naruto said as he opened a door. Yuki noticed a rock in the middle of the room and glass fragments all over the floor; she glanced over at Naruto and noticed a sad look on his face which was instantly masked by a smile. "Look's like someone accidentally threw a rock at the window," Naruto said with a smile. "This happens a lot in around this neighbourhood."

Yuki could tell he was lying, she managed to get a glimpse of one word on the stone before Naruto grabbed and covered it, 'demon' was what Yuki saw as Naruto tossed the stone carelessly over at a corner along with a pile of other stones. _I was stupid to think his life was good when he's always smiling and laughing, what kind of life he must have been through if he barely bats an eye over something like this_. Yuki thought biting her lips nervously. _He is a jinchuriki, a warden of Kyuubi, I have heard of Kyuubi from my mother, Kyuubi was supposedly defeated by Yondaime, but it seems it was sealed within Naruto instead. I can already tell his life has been hell, he must be living amongst the hatred of the villagers sadden by their lost, yet he lives life with an happy smile, he even dreams of becoming the Hokage to protect the village._ Yuki thought sadly. _And to save my life, he has to live with me always holding his hands, how can he hope to become the Hokage?_ Yuki thought. It was at this moment Yuki decided. She would dedicate all her strength in order to help Naruto achieve his goals.

"Hey, you must be sweaty after everything that happened today, do you want to take a shower?" Naruto asked with a blush.

"I hope you aren't having perverted thoughts about that," Yuki dead panned.

"No, I'm just asking," Naruto shot back.

"Yeah, a shower would be great, but, I don't have any clothes," Yuki replied. "I forgot to grab my clothes since we left in such a hurry."

"You'll just have to wear mines, we'll go buy some clothes for you tomorrow, since you'll be fighting and doing mission with me, its better to buy something easier to move than the clothes you're in right now," Naruto said.

"Your clothes?" Yuki asked blushing faintly.

"Unless you don't want to wear anything," Naruto said with a nose bleed.

"I'll take your clothes, thank you," Yuki replied in an instant.

"Here, take this white shirt and pants, they're new," Naruto said as he walked over to the closet and tossed out the two articles at Yuki.

"You better not peek when I'm taking the shower," Yuki said with a blush.

"I won't, sheeze, we're connected, I don't feel like getting beat to death," Naruto muttered, the two were standing in front of the bath room.

"How am I going to take my clothes off?" Yuki asked, pulling up their connected hands. Glancing at their hands for a second, the two came up with wild possibilities, such as pulling the shirt over to Naruto's body and slipping it out. Shaking their heads the two decided on one way to doing it, "We'll just switch hands after I'm done taking one side out," Yuki said.

"Yeah, okay," Naruto replied.

"You better not peek," Yuki said.

"I won't," Naruto replied with a sigh. "I promise," Naruto said.

And so Yuki proceed to strip out of her attire, Naruto faced away with a blush on his face. "Okay, let's switch hands," Yuki said.

Naruto lifted up his left hand up to his left shoulder while Yuki lifted her right hand and grasped Naruto's hand. Dropping each others other hand, Yuki proceeds to get the rest of her shirt off. "You better not look," Yuki repeated once more.

"I won't. Lay off, I'm not a pervert," Naruto said for the last time. After just one more glimpse, Yuki pulled the curtain close, their hands connected at the opening, with Naruto facing away. Naruto tapped his foot impatiently. It was taking a god damn long time for Yuki to finish. "Will you hurry up, I've been standing here for the past hour," Naruto complained exaggerating.

"A girl needs her beauty shower and it hasn't been an hour," Yuki shot back.

"I need to take a shower too, at this rate we won't be sleeping tonight," Naruto complained. "I need to wake up early to train, which reminds me, you were able to keep up with us on our way back, are you a ninja too?" Naruto asked.

"Just a little, being a half Ketsuki gives me some boost in my physical abilities, my mother also trained me as a ninja before she passed away," Yuki explained.

"What did you learn?" Naruto asked.

"Some taijutsu, the only ninjutsu I was taught were **Dorein** and **Yuukai**," Yuki replied.

"Kakashi-sensei never told me what **Yuukai** is, what type of ninjutsu is it? Another scary one?" Naruto asked with curiosity.

"Not at all, **Yuukai** is a support type ninjutsu, it allows the user and anyone he or she touches to fuse, or more correctly something like synchronizing their chakra together, it grants a boosts in physical abilities between the user and the ones they touch, the exact detail I'm not so sure, my mother taught me this when I was seven, I only vaguely remember the details, even now I have not yet successfully use it, so its unusable in combat," Yuki explained.

"Darn, it sounds like an excellent move for us, since we're stuck together," Naruto said. "Are you done yet?" Naruto asked changing the topic.

"Don't look, I'm coming out," Yuki said, as she slowly carefully peeked out from behind the curtains to make sure Naruto wasn't facing her way. After making sure, Yuki stepped out, and grabbed the towel on the rack. Drying off her body, Yuki hurriedly puts on her clothes, making sure to switch hands in order to put her shirt on properly. "Done," Yuki said as Naruto sighed and turned around.

"Okay, it's my turn," Naruto said as he dragged her out of the shower. Getting another set of clothes from the closet, Naruto dragged Yuki back to the bathroom. "You turn around now, you better not peek," Naruto said to Yuki.

"I won't, who would peek at you," Yuki shot back with a blush.

"See, I can use that same argument, but you wouldn't listen, now you see how annoying it is?" Naruto asked with a grin, causing Yuki to fume. "You better not peek," Naruto said mockingly as he began to take off his jumpsuit. Repeating the same process, Naruto took off all his clothes and closed the curtain. "You better not peek," He repeated one last time.

"Okay, I know its annoying now, stop rubbing it in," Yuki complained.

"Hahahahaha, see, at least I don't go calling you a pervert, you're lucky I'm too tired to shower for an hour too," Naruto said mockingly.

"It wasn't an hour," Yuki replied.

"It felt like it, that's all that matters," Naruto replied.

Naruto was quick as he finished his shower. Drying himself he quickly puts on his pyjamas and giving Yuki the okay the two of them walked back to the bedroom. "You know, it's going to be hard holding onto each other's hands while we sleep," Naruto said.

"Do you have any ropes or strings? We'll tie our hands together," Yuki suggested.

Nodding in agreement, Naruto dragged Yuki into the kitchen where he managed to find a rope, quickly tying their hands together they prepared for sleep. "I need to brush my teeth," Naruto said.

"I don't have my toothbrush with me," Yuki stated.

"Another thing we have to buy tomorrow," Naruto said.

"But what about tonight?" Yuki asked.

"Nothing you can do about it, unless you use mines, which I doubt you, will," Naruto said walking into the bathroom. After brushing his teeth the two prepared to sleep but than they realized how incredibly embarrassing it would be to sleep on a small bed like Naruto's. "We'll have to sleep in the living room today, my room has glass fragments all over the floor," Naruto stated. "I should have two futons," Naruto added.

Preparing their futons the two also sets up a divider between them, only allowing room for their hands to rest. "Good night, Yuki," Naruto said.

"Good night, Naruto," Yuki replied.

The two drifted to sleep shortly later, well, Yuki did, her legs destroyed the barrier in an instant and slammed into Naruto's face waking him up. "You've got to be kidding me," Naruto said.

-

Preview of Chapter 2: _What! You're faster and stronger than me? Training starts! You two… will learn to dance!_

A/N: A long introduction. Next chapter will deal with more introduction as Yuki slowly meets the regular cast. Hopefully Yuki doesn't seem like a Mary Sue. I hope. Naruto is also far better trained than in the original story, albeit not by much, yet. I intend to add more character to Yuki, until then! Hope you guys enjoyed the introduction.


	2. As we are right now

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

**Double Arts**

Chapter 2: As we are right now…

Yuki awoke at the sound of alarm. She had a peaceful and uninterrupted sleep for the night. Glancing to her right, Yuki saw Naruto already up, seeming to be mumbling something. The sun was still down, so squinting slightly, Yuki almost yelled in shock at the bags under Naruto's eyes, and several bruises along his face. "What happened to you?" Yuki asked.

"Nothing, nothing at all," Naruto muttered as he stood up like a mummy. "I need to brush my teeth," Naruto said dragging Yuki with him.

"I'm sorry," Yuki said with a bow.

"Why are you apologizing?" Naruto asked. His face was like that of a mummy.

"My mother used to say I had horrible sleeping habits, I must have kept you awake the whole night," Yuki said as she bowed in apology again.

"Not at all, you didn't keep me awake," Naruto lied.

_I must have punched or kick you in order for you to bruise like that_. Yuki thought as she stared at the several bruises on Naruto's face. The two of them sat at the table and ate some instant ramen before heading out. "Are we going to train now?" Yuki asked.

"Yes, in order for me to become Hokage I must train everyday," Naruto said with fire in his eyes.

"But how are you going to fight with me holding onto you like this?" Yuki asked lifting up their hands. "You confidently said you would still remain as a ninja with me holding onto you like this, you must have a plan right?" Yuki asked.

"Not at all," Naruto replied. "I never plan, I always think as I go," Naruto said arrogantly.

"That's not good at all, it's always good to have a plan," Yuki said.

"I don't know. Do you have any idea?" Naruto asked Yuki.

"I don't really know myself, perhaps we can ask your sensei or the Hokage," Yuki suggested.

"That's great, we'll ask them after our morning training," Naruto said, as he hurried to the training fields.

The two arrived at the empty training field and sat down. "Okay first, we should know each others techniques and strength," Naruto said.

"Right, that's a good idea," Yuki said.

"I clone," Naruto simply stated.

"Huh?" Yuki said with a confused look.

"Here, I'll show you," Naruto said with a grin as he pulled his hands up for his trademark technique, only to gasped in shock when he realized with one arm, he couldn't make hand seals. "I can't use ninjutsu," Naruto stated as he stared at Yuki.

_First obstacle met_. Yuki thought to herself. "Okay, before we even begin, we have to figure out all that we can about this connection. We have to understand how you're suppressing my curse first, can it only be done by holding each others hands, or can I be in contact with any other places," Yuki began. "After that we can talk about each other's combat abilities, than we'll move to figuring out a way to fight in our predicament," Yuki finished.

"Okay, try and touch my shoulder," Naruto said as Yuki placed her other hand on Naruto's shoulder. They nodded and let go of each other hands. Yuki instantly went into a coughing fit, which Naruto stopped as fast as he could by grabbing her hand. "Okay, so that didn't work, try touching closer to my hand, grab my wrist," Naruto suggested. Yuki grabbed Naruto's wrist and began coughing again which Naruto stopped. "Does the suppression only work when our hands are touching?" Naruto mumbled.

"That might not be the case," Yuki said panting slightly for breathe. "Perhaps our skin must come in contact, the last two times I've touched you, I was holding onto your clothes," Yuki said. "This time, I'll keep my hand on your cheek," Yuki said.

Nodding, Naruto allowed Yuki to touch his cheek, and when they let go of each other's hand Yuki was not coughing. "Good, we determined how the curse is suppressed, now we should figure out each other's strength before we figure out a way to fight," Yuki said.

"Right so as I was saying, I clone," Naruto said, now that his hands were free he performed his trademark cross hand seal and ten shadow clones popped into existence.

"Are they real?" Yuki asked.

"Yeah, but they get destroyed after one hit," Naruto explained.

"I see, but this move will be a handicap for us," Yuki said, causing Naruto to have a look of confusion. "If you clone, you only clone yourself, the real you will still stand out cause you're holding onto me, this will become a handicap," Yuki explained.

"Right, but I can also have them henge," Naruto said with a smirk, as five of the ten clones performed henge into an exact replica of Yuki, and grab a hold of five Naruto clones hands.

"That's incredible, I didn't know clones could use ninjutsu too," Yuki said surprised.

"Shadow clones are special, they aren't like normal clones," Naruto replied.

"Do you have any other moves?" Yuki asked.

"Not really, shadow clones are all I need in battle so far," Naruto said scratching his cheek slightly in embarrassment at his lack of techniques.

"That's fine, shadow clones can be used even if we're together if they can also henge," Yuki said. "I only know two moves, **Dorein** and **Yuukai**, besides that I've always relied on my taijutsu and Ketsuki physical abilities," Yuki began. "I promised my mother I will never use **Dorein**, and I haven't mastered **Yuukai**," Yuki began. "I guess my chakra control is pretty good too, my mother drilled me in a lot of those," Yuki continued thoughtfully. "I think that's about it, so we have **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, Henge**,and an incomplete **Yuukai**," Yuki said listing their techniques. "Now we have to figure out a way to fight while holding hands," Yuki finished grabbing onto Naruto's hands again.

"We could try sparring with the clones while holding hands, let's see what we come up with," Naruto suggested.

"That's a great idea, let's do it," Yuki said as she and Naruto stood up, the Yuki clones dropped their henge and the ten Naruto charged towards the pair. Within minutes the pair was massacred, they were able to fend off several clones, until they started screwing up due to their lack of coordination by dragging each other the wrong way or stepping into each other foot when they tried to move forward, either way they got defeated fairly fast.

"This is harder than I thought," Naruto said.

"Yeah, our coordination is horrible, we keep dragging the other person the wrong way and we step into each other's area, at this rate we'll be unable to fight head to head against anyone," Yuki said.

"Hmm, we'll just have to leave that till we can ask Kakashi-sensei and the old man, how about our physical abilities?" Naruto asked.

"Right, we should determine our base abilities first," Yuki said.

"So first up, speed," Naruto said.

"We'll run at full speed towards that tree there," Yuki suggested pointing towards a normal sized tree in the distance.

"Okay, on my mark," Naruto said, "Three, two, one, go!" Naruto yelled as the two broke off into a run. They remained head to head until Yuki began to gain speed; soon Yuki was a whole body ahead as she touched the tree first. "Damn, you're faster than me," Naruto said.

"It must be because of my Ketsuki blood," Yuki replied. "What about our strength?" Yuki asked.

"Arm wrestling, I'm going to win this one for sure," Naruto said competitively, as the two got onto their stomach on the glass and prepared to arm wrestle. The match lasted less than ten seconds as Yuki easily over powered Naruto. "I lost again," Naruto said with his head down.

"It's not because you're weak, Naruto," Yuki comforted. "These are just inherited ability due to my blood," Yuki explained.

"What next?" Naruto asked.

"Our chakra control?" Yuki suggested. "My mother says I'm pretty proficient at it," Yuki said thoughtfully.

"Right, I can run up trees," Naruto said confidently with a grin.

"Can you walk on water?" Yuki asked, causing Naruto to cock his head to the side slightly in confusion. "I take that as a no, right, I'll show you," Yuki said as she dragged Naruto towards the small pond. "Walking water is similar to walking on trees, we gather chakra onto our feet, but, instead of using the chakra to stick onto the surface, we send out a steady stream of chakra, thus remaining afloat," Yuki explained as she stepped onto the water surface.

"Wahh, I didn't know you can do something like this," Naruto said with surprise evident in his voice. "How old were you when you learned this?" Naruto asked.

"When I was six, just before my mother passed away," Yuki replied sadly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up," Naruto apologized.

"No need to apologize, Naruto," Yuki said.

"Wow, you learned how to do it at six?" Naruto asked surprised.

"Well, no, it took me till eight to understand how to walk on water, I wasn't very bright back than," Yuki said scratching her hair in embarrassment.

"This is great, doesn't this mean we have part of our training down," Naruto said happily. "I have to get faster and stronger and I have to learn how to walk on water, this is great," Naruto said with a grin.

"You're quite weird Naruto, I've never heard of someone this happy to train," Yuki said glancing towards Naruto.

"Hmm, my dream is to be Hokage, I know it is not an easy road, it'll be a road full of hardship, that's why I must become stronger, stronger, and stronger until I'm strong enough to surpass all the Hokage that came before me," Naruto said confidently, a foxy smile on his face.

Yuki felt herself blushing faintly. _He might be more mature than I thought_. Yuki thought as she stared at Naruto who was seemingly staring off into the distance. "We'll have to become stronger together won't we?" Yuki said, as she held up both their hands with a smile.

"Of course," Naruto replied with a grin turning to face her.

"Right, so what do you usually do when you train alone?" Yuki asked.

"I run a lap around the village, I do push-ups, sit-ups, than I run up and down trees to practice my chakra control before ending it by sparring with my clones, after that I have to meet up with Sakura-chan, Kakashi-sensei and the bastard for missions," Naruto said listing off his work out.

"We'll keep doing your normal exercise, but we'll adjust it a little, instead of practicing tree climbing, you can now practice walking on water, we won't spar with clones today until we get some advice on how we can fight as a team from Kakashi and Hokage-sama," Yuki explained.

"Right, in order for me to get faster and stronger I can buy weights, but won't that make our speed and strength unbalance again?" Naruto suggested before questioning himself. "You can wear weights too," Naruto said with a grin.

"I don't want to," Yuki said turning her head and looking away from Naruto.

"What! Why?" Naruto complained.

"Well, you know, I don't want to grow all muscular and everything," Yuki said slowly.

"What! Who cares," Naruto said.

"I care, I don't want to turn muscular and everything," Yuki complained. "Everything but that is fine!" Yuki said.

"I think you'll look cute no matter what happens so who cares if you're muscular or whatever," Naruto shot back.

_He thinks I look cute_. Yuki thought with a faint blush. _Leave it to him to not understand the effects of his words_. Yuki thought with a sweat drop as she toned Naruto out. "I'll think about it, we'll decide after checking it out," Yuki gave in.

"Yatta, I knew you'll understand," Naruto said grinning.

"Well, so let's decide what we'll be doing today first," Yuki said.

"Right, we're going to jog, than do basic physical exercises, after that I'll need to practice walking on water, after that we'll meet up with the team and we'll ask Kakashi-sensei and get his advice on how to fight as a team, after our missions we'll ask the old man, than we go buy your clothes and other necessities," Naruto said listing off their plan.

"We'll need to get you an outfit change too," Yuki dead panned.

"Why? I love this outfit," Naruto complained in an instant.

"First off, I've never heard of a ninja wearing flashy colours like orange, it's basically screaming kill me," Yuki began causing Naruto to fume. "Secondly, if my curse is suppressed by skin to skin contact, than we can't have you wearing your long sleeve jump suit, that will leave me little room besides your hands," Yuki explained her reasoning. "That's why as much as I hate to I have to change my out fit too," Yuki said, her out fit was a long sleeve completely white dress that reached her ankles, it was somewhat tight, clinging onto Yuki slim figure. "It's hard to fight and move in this." Yuki finished.

"Right, but my outfit will have to be orange! I love orange," Naruto shot back.

"Right, right, we'll keep the orange," Yuki said giving up with a sigh.

"What about my shuriken and kunai pouch?" Naruto asked pointing to his pouch strapped to his right leg, which was impossible to grab due to the fact his right hand was occupied.

"We have no choice, for now I'll walk on your left side, but in the future we will have to without a doubt fight with either hand, we'll have to train both hands equally so it doesn't matter which side we're on, we must still be able to fight," Yuki said. "I'll also need to buy a kunai and shuriken pouch but that can wait till much later," Yuki said.

"We have a long road a head of us, so we must get started," Naruto said.

"Right, let's begin our jog," Yuki said.

It was about an hour later, Yuki was panting and completely out of breathe, while Naruto was only just starting to breathe heavily, it was as if the one hour lap was an intense warm up for him. _I see, I may be faster and stronger than him, but his stamina is leagues beyond mines, even though my stamina is enchanted by my Ketsuki blood_. Yuki thought, she was trying her best to keep up, when Naruto said jog she expected jogging, but Naruto was running, although it was not at full speed it was still quite incredible. _Konoha is much larger than I thought, an hour in and we haven't done one circle yet_. Yuki thought to herself.

"We're done one lap," Naruto said as he stopped, wiping off his sweat with a sleeve while glancing at Yuki who was panting for breathe. "Should we stop for a bit?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"No, let's continue, I don't want to be the one slowing you down," Yuki said through her panting.

The pair went back to the training field and began to do push-ups and sit ups, basic exercises, until it was time to practice water walking. "This is your first time right?" Yuki asked.

"Yeah," Naruto replied staring at the pond in front of him.

"Water walking is very simple, in fact you just keep a constant stream of chakra at your feet, you just have to keep practicing until you have the right amount just necessary to stay afloat on the surface so you don't just burn out your supply, but not too little that you begin sinking," Yuki explained, as she took a step onto the water's surface. "Remember, it's a constant flow of chakra, unlike tree walking where you use it to stick," Yuki repeated once more.

"Right," Naruto said with a confident look, as he closed his eyes and began to gather chakra at his feet. Placing his foot on the surface of the water, Naruto took one step and his foot plunged into the shallow depth. "Damn it, did I gather too little?" Naruto yelled.

"I'm not sure, perhaps you weren't keeping a constant stream of chakra," Yuki suggested.

An hour later, they remained by the banks, by now Naruto has successfully stepped a few times onto the water by burning his chakra like mad before losing concentration and dropping onto the banks of the shallow depth. "We'll have to do this some other time, we have to meet up with the team now," Naruto said staring up into the sky.

"Right," Yuki replied with a nod, as the two made their way to the meeting spot of team 7 which was on the bridge.

They ran quite some ways before arriving at the meeting spot, Naruto and Yuki saw Sasuke with Sakura bothering him on the bridge when they neared. "Good morning, Sakura-channnn," Naruto yelled happily as he waved like a madman at Sakura.

"What is wrong with you two? You're still holding hands?" Sakura said glancing at their hands.

_Right, we forgot to mention it to them_. Yuki thought. "Where is your sensei?" Yuki asked curiously, as she glanced around the area.

"Kakashi-sensei is known for being notoriously late for everything, he tells us to meet at six, but in reality he doesn't arrive till nine, which is now," Naruto whispered into Yuki's ears.

_Such a person exists?_ Yuki thought in disbelief with a sweat drop.

"Yo," Kakashi said appearing in a poof, he was reading his Icha Icha paradise. "Ah, I see you're still with us Yuki, to be honest I'm surprised," Kakashi said.

"What does that mean," Naruto said jeering at Kakashi.

"Nothing at all," Kakashi said with a grin. "Right, let's go report in for missions," Kakashi said.

The group of five began making their way towards the Hokage tower. Sasuke walked far a head of the group with Sakura stalking right after him. Naruto and Yuki stayed behind with Kakashi who was reading his book. "Kakashi-sensei, do you have any idea of how we can fight together while holding hands?" Naruto asked.

"We need a taijutsu style for our current situation, otherwise we will never be able to fight against other people," Yuki spoke up as well.

"Hmm, well, you'll have to learn to dance together," Kakashi spoke up without looking up from his book.

"Huh?" Naruto and Yuki stared at him in wonder.

"We need to learn how to fight, what use is dancing in combat," Naruto dead panned.

"You need to understand one thing Naruto," Kakashi began, closing his book and looking up at the two. "In order for the two of you to function as a team, and to fight in the future while holding each other's hands, you must learn rhythm, you must learn to move together as one, I'm sure for you to resort to asking me you must of tried it out, you guys must have been badly coordinated, right? Perhaps running to the wrong side and dragging the other, or stepping onto each other's foot when you want to move to the same area, those are certain problems that will occur unless you learn to work together," Kakashi explained wisely staring at the two.

"I see, I see what you're trying to say, by learning to dance we will learn to move together as one, we won't trip over each other's foot, or drag the other the wrong way, I never thought of it like that," Yuki said thoughtfully. "But I don't know how to dance," Yuki added before glancing at Naruto.

"I don't either," Naruto said noticing Yuki's glance.

"Well, we can always ask Sandaime-sama to find a team that can teach you to dance," Kakashi suggested. _Who knew something in Icha Icha Paradise will help me out in the future, I can't wait to rub this into Kurenai's face, I told her smut is knowledge!_ Kakashi thought with a huge grin.

"Right, Kakashi-sensei, I wish for you to give me a month break from missions and team gathering," Naruto asked with a serious expression on his face.

"Hmm?" Kakashi said staring straight at Naruto.

"Right now, I can not function as a Shinobi, I know that," Naruto said lifting up his and Yuki's hands and staring at it. "I need a month, just one, for me and Yuki to focus on training in order for me to be able to remain a shinobi," Naruto continued. "In one month, I promise that Yuki and I will become stronger, stronger than I ever was alone," Naruto finished before staring straight at Kakashi with a serious expression so rare on the blonde that Kakashi was stunned for a brief moment, that expression reminded him of his sensei, Kakashi mused.

"Very well, I will personally request for Sandaime-sama to give you a month of absent," Kakashi replied. "By the end of the month we will spar, you say you will become stronger than you ever were, right? Than prove it to me or I will personally request the Hokage to retire you from being a ninja," Kakashi finished seriously as he and Naruto stared straight into each other's eyes.

"Naruto, maybe we shouldn't do this," Yuki began when she heard Kakashi's condition.

"Yuki, you said we will become stronger together, it is only natural we accept his conditions because there will be no way that we will lose," Naruto stated confidently glancing briefly towards Yuki with a huge confident smirk.

"Right," Yuki said with a confident nod and smile on her face.

_Hmm, these two might be closer than I first thought, but I am interested, what will you show me Naruto, what will the number 1 surprising ninja show me. Can you really become a ninja that can fight while holding someone else's hands?_ Kakashi thought as he stared at the backs of the two thirteen year olds before him. _By the end of this month it will be the birth of a legend, or the sad end to the ninja who without a doubt held the most potential out of this generation_. _Interesting_. Kakashi thought as he reopened his Icha Icha Paradise.

Team 7 plus one arrived at the Hokage tower shortly after their talk. Standing before the Hokage, Sasuke and Sakura prepared for their mission and never expected what was about to happen. "Sandaime-sama, I have a request," Kakashi spoke seriously. Naruto and Yuki grinned at each other while Sasuke and Sakura who peaked with interest watched. "I wish for you to allow Uzumaki Naruto one month off from active ninja duty," Kakashi said.

"Why would you need to do that Kakashi? What did Naruto do?" Iruka asked worriedly.

"He did nothing wrong Iruka, this is a request formally requested by Naruto himself," Kakashi replied.

Sarutobi stared at Naruto and Yuki before nodding. "Very well, I understand the situation, Naruto may have one month off from active ninja duty, and will your team need another member to fill in until he returns?" Sarutobi asked.

"That won't be necessary," Kakashi replied. "Oh, I have another request, if possible, will Sandaime-sama request for a team to teach the pair to dance?" Kakashi asked with a grin as he stared at Sarutobi with a gleam in his eyes.

_I see, Icha Icha Paradise Vol.3, when Makoto and Shinsei learned to dance, learning to move as one_. Sarutobi realized as he noticed the gleam in Kakashi's eyes. "Very well, I will request for a team today, I will have them ready by tomorrow," Sarutobi replied.

"Hokage-sama, Kakashi, what is happening here?" Iruka asked in wonder. "Why is Naruto taking time off, who is that girl, and why are they learning how to dance?" Iruka asked listing off all the things he didn't understand.

"I'll tell you all about if you treat me to Ichiriku ramen tonight, Iruka-sensei," Naruto said with a foxy grin.

"From this moment on, Naruto, Yuki, you have one month, I will be awaiting your results," Kakashi said seriously staring straight into Naruto's eyes.

"Right," Naruto and Yuki replied confidently with a nod.

Naruto prepared to drag Yuki out of the mission room until Sarutobi stopped them. "Naruto, here is money for all that you will need, your new apartment will be prepared by the end of the week," Sarutobi said, as he held up a thick envelope filled with cash.

"Thank you, old man," Naruto said thankfully, as he and Yuki bowed, grabbing the envelope Naruto pocketed it and he and Yuki left the mission room.

"What is going on?" Sakura asked in wonder.

"Well, team 7 is reporting for missions, Hokage-sama," Kakashi said with a grin.

-

"One month, let's get training!" Naruto said excitedly as he and Yuki walked down the streets of Konoha.

Yuki was slowly getting irritated and annoyed. Around them she noticed all the glares from the villagers as they murmured and whispered amongst themselves, glaring at Naruto and her with hateful eyes. _This is unbelievable, Naruto isn't even paying them attention, how badly have they treated him to cause him to become like this_. Yuki thought with a bite of her lips.

"What's with that girl, holding the hands of that demon brat," One of the female villagers said to another, Yuki's ears perked up.

"Damn demon whore," Another villager whispered back, causing Yuki to bite her lips to keep from yelling out in anger.

"What did you just say?" Naruto spoke up in a low voice, his eyes angrily glaring at the female villagers. The villagers flinched and took a step back under Naruto's glare. "I don't mind what you call me, but never call her that, or I'll personally beat the shit out of you," Naruto said angrily, the villagers nodded fearfully as they made a run for it.

"That wasn't necessary," Yuki whispered softly, as she and Naruto walked down the streets, the villagers continued to glare hatefully at them but none dared to speak in fear of evoking Naruto's wrath. "Your dream is to be Hokage right? How can you say something like beating them up," Yuki continued. "I can handle a little insult."

"It doesn't matter if anyone insults me, but if they insult my friends, I won't ever stand for it," Naruto replied, he was still angry apparently.

"Is that so," Yuki said blushing faintly. _Friends, huh, I've never really had a friend my age_. Yuki thought to herself with a small smile. Yuki walked quietly following the fuming Naruto before speaking up, "Are we going to keep training or go buy the stuff we need first?"

"We'll get clothes first," Naruto said dragging Yuki into the alley way. "I need to henge, touch some place else for now," Naruto said which Yuki complied as she touched Naruto's cheeks. "**Henge**," Naruto said with a grin, as he transformed into Sasuke. "Tehe," Naruto said rubbing his nose in a Narutoish way, something Sasuke would never do.

"Why Sasuke?" Yuki asked with curiosity.

"It's easier to move around as Sasuke, the villagers always rip me off unless I henge, I can also use this time to make Sasuke look like a fool in front of everyone," Naruto, or Sasuke in this case said with a huge foxy grin.

"So petty," Yuki shot back with a grin.

"What, the bastard totally deserves it for stealing my bandits!" Naruto said. "Besides, Sasuke is around my height, makes it easier to buy clothes," Naruto added thoughtfully.

"Right, right, let's go," Yuki said. "Wait, won't people start rumours if they see Sasuke walking around holding another girl's hands?" Yuki asked. "He seems to be pretty popular," Yuki said thoughtfully remembering all the swooning Sasuke got while walking down the streets earlier.

"Doesn't matter, more trouble for him," Naruto said grinning in his Sasuke's disguise.

"Right, let's go," Yuki replied with a grin.

And Naruto was right; at the shops they visited the owners gave discount for the last Uchiha. By the time they were done, Naruto was dressed in a no sleeve orange vest with black outline around the collar all the way down the zippers, he wore a black shirt underneath the orange vest, his pants were now just a little below his knees and black so were his sandals. Naruto has a belt wrapped around his waist to put his shuriken and kunai into the bag attached to the belt on his back allowing for access of his weapons with either hands. Yuki made a more drastic change, no longer was she in a dress, she was now wearing a no sleeve white vest with black out lining around the collar which was half way up her neck going all the way down the zipper. She wore a black short sleeve shirt inside the vest, she wore a pair of black pants that only barely reaches her knees and she wore a pair of boots that passed her ankle and were half way to her knees. Yuki had a belt wrapped around her waist with a pouch attached onto the back of her belt.

"Great, now let's get out of here so I can get out of henge," Naruto whispered as he and Yuki quickly made their way to some other place.

In an alley Naruto dropped his henge and with a grin to Yuki as they made their way to the training field. "We won't be learning to dance till tomorrow, so we'll spend the rest of the day water walking," Naruto said.

"Sure, it'll also help me increase my overall chakra control too," Yuki said with a nod.

And so, for the rest of the day till night the two of them continued to water walk, Yuki managed only one and a half hours of standing continuously on the water before running out of chakra, standing by the shore, Yuki watched as Naruto slowly and slowly got better with each steps, until he was walking on the water every step, albeit he needed to totally concentrate on walking on water alone otherwise he starts sinking, unlike Yuki who could walk on water without the focus.

After a whole day of training, Naruto and Yuki began making way to Ichiraku's ramen, to meet up with Iruka for a free meal.

"So, who is this Iruka-sensei you talk so highly of?" Yuki asked Naruto as the two walked towards their destination, Ichiraku's ramen.

"Besides the old man, Iruka-sensei was the first person to acknowledge me, and he was the one who gave me this head band," Naruto replied with a grin, as he shifted the headband on his head with his free hand, a reminiscing grin on his face.

"Now that you mention it, I might have to get a headband too, or maybe we'll be fine if you alone wear it, after all, we're stuck together anyways," Yuki said thoughtfully.

"We'll worry about that later, because a month from now, we might not even be ninjas anymore," Naruto said softly sounding a little unsure.

Yuki gave Naruto's hand a soft squeeze. "You're a weird guy. You know that, Uzumaki Naruto?" Yuki asked.

"Huh, well, that is actually the second time someone said that to me, both times being you," Naruto replied with a small smile.

"I don't get you at all, from time to time, you act like a complete idiot with absolutely no faith in your own abilities, but, there are times when you're completely mature, you're confident in your own strength, determined to succeed, you even look a little cool," Yuki continued softly. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, be confident in your abilities, like how I am completely confident in yours, you wouldn't want to make me think otherwise, right?" Yuki finished with a smile, as she watched Naruto's smile brighten.

"Right, I'm sorry for having doubts, especially after saying we would get stronger together," Naruto said, sounding like his confident old self again.

"That's the Naruto I know," Yuki replied with a grin.

The two entered the stall, and they found Iruka already seated and waiting. "Iruka-sensei!" Naruto said happily.

"Naruto, Yuki-san," Iruka greeted.

"Hello, Iruka-san, please just call me Yuki," Yuki greeted.

"Yuki it is, and please call me Iruka as well," Iruka replied with a gentle smile.

"I will," Yuki replied as she and Naruto took a seat, with Naruto next to Iruka. _Now that I think about it, aren't we having ramen almost every meal of the day? At this rate I'll get sick_. Yuki thought with a sweat drop, upon realizing the state of her situation.

The trio ordered their meals as Naruto and Iruka began chatting. "So, Naruto, mind telling me what exactly happened in the last mission, why you're taking time off of mission, and why you're holding Yuki's hand at all times?" Iruka asked.

Naruto began telling the meeting between Yuki and him, their situation, and the reason why they needed to take time off of missions. Yuki slowly warmed up to Iruka's presence, as she, Ayame and Teuchi took part in the conversations.

"I see, you must have it rough, Yuki, having to be stuck with Naruto all the time," Iruka said.

"Hey, not this again!" Naruto said as Ayume, Iruka and Teuchi laughed. Noticing Yuki's silence, the four turned to her.

"Oh, sorry," Yuki said, when she noticed the stares. "Having to come to know Naruto more-," Yuki began before pausing, her face slightly red in embarrassment. "Well, this is quite embarrassing to say, but, I guess I'm glad it was Naruto, I think I might of actually killed myself if it was Uchiha-san or Haruno-chan," Yuki said.

"Haha, see, Yuki doesn't find me annoying, but, Yuki, Sakura-chan is the best, you'll like her for sure," Naruto said defending his crush.

"On second thought, you're just as annoying, if not only a little more bearable," Yuki said changing her mind with a small huff.

"Wh-why?" Naruto asked confused as the other three occupants of the stall slapped their forehead in display of Naruto's stupidity in action.

The dinner continued as Naruto being Naruto, consumed 20 bowls of ramen. Naruto and Iruka continued to chat until it was late, seeing as though Iruka had work tomorrow; they bid each other good bye after the tab.

The walk home was done in awkward silence. "U-um, Yuki, could it be you're angry at something?" Naruto asked, sound nervous.

"Not at all, why would I be?" Yuki replied calmly, an overly happy smile on her face.

"U-um, could it be that you didn't like Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked stupidly.

"Naruto, remember what I said during our walk to Ichiraku's ramen earlier? This is one of those times when you act like a complete idiot," Yuki replied calmly.

Naruto suddenly stopped, as he jerked Yuki around to face him, his other hand grasping hers, as he leaned forward and stared into her with narrowed eyes. "Wa-wah, what are you doing now?" Yuki asked surprised, a noticeable blush on her face, as she moved her face back away from the closeness of Naruto's.

Naruto, being as dense as he is unable to understand what exactly was going on with Yuki, as he asked stuttering, "Co-could it be th-that yo-you ha-hate ra-ra-ramen?"

Yuki gritted her teeth angrily, a vein visibly popping on her forehead as she slammed her heel on Naruto's feet with a loud yell, "Idiot!"

"Owwwwwwwwwwww!" Naruto's yelp in pain could be heard throughout the village, waking the citizens already sleeping soundly in their beds. The darkness of the street was slowly filled with flicks of lights being turned on, and around them, the swish of opening curtains and unlocking of windows could be heard.

Yuki hurriedly dragged Naruto, who was still whimpering in pain, away from the scene and back to the apartment as quickly as she could. Shutting the apartment door to a close, Yuki was panting, trying to catch her breath. Turning to Naruto, Yuki had an apologetic look on her face. "I'm sorry, Naruto, I lost control of my temper, will you forgive me," Yuki said, begging for forgiveness.

"I'll forgive you-," Naruto said with a pause before continuing, "-if you tell me what is bothering you," Naruto finished with a sly grin.

"It's-a-secret," Yuki replied sticking out her tongue at Naruto before grinning as she turned away.

"Hey, that's not fair, I won't forgive you than!" Naruto said as he jumped on one foot to follow after Yuki. "Women are scary, and they're weirder than me," Naruto said thoughtfully before adding, "except for Sakura-chan."

"You're an idiot," Yuki muttered softly to herself as she dragged Naruto towards the bags where their new clothes were in.

-

Preview of Chapter 3: _It's time to dance! Yuki's past revealed._

A/N: A shorter chapter this time and yet another chapter of introduction and meetings. Next chapter will begin their one month break of training. Expect the most overly cheesy scene yet to come :P. Chapter 3 will probably come in a day or so, considering it's yet another short chapter. Consider the first three chapters the prologue, as chapter 4 is where the action finally begins.


	3. Past revealed under the moonlight

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: I decided to put this out since it was so short, expect the next chapter to come slower. Enjoy the last of the introduction and training arc. Next chapter the action begins and Double Arts is revealed.

**Double Arts**

Chapter 3: Past revealed under the moonlight

Early in the morning Naruto's head was perked up by a knock on the door. Naruto was the only one awake than, being kept up by Yuki's wild sleeping habits. At this rate, Naruto was going to die to the ferocious beating from Yuki before he even becomes Hokage. Naruto moved over to Yuki before shaking her shoulder gently. "Yuki, wake up, there is someone at the door," Naruto said softly.

WHAM as their connected hands slammed into Naruto's right eye. "Idiot!" Yuki yelled in her sleep.

Naruto yelp softly in pain, "I must be a masochist of some kind, actually wanting to face this kind of pain every single day of my life," Naruto whispered softly to himself.

Yuki stirred awake slowly, as she sat up yawning. "Good morning Naruto," Yuki said turning towards Naruto before gasping in shock. "Your eye, it's bruised," Yuki announced worried.

"Not a problem, it'll heal soon," Naruto said. "Besides that, we have someone at the door," Naruto added pointing to the knocking at the door.

The two got up, hands still wrapped in ropes, as they walked over to the door. Yuki was busy trying to fix her bed hair as Naruto turned the knob, opening the door slightly to peek outside. Outside the door of Naruto's apartment stood Kurenai, Kiba, Hinata and Shino. Kiba noticed Naruto's face poking out, and laughed. "What the hell, why is your eye bruised," Kiba asked.

Akamaru barked in agreement on his perch on top of Kiba's head.

"That's not funny, Kiba-kun, Akamaru-kun" Hinata said softly.

"Is it people you know, Naruto?" Yuki asked curiously as she poked her head out from behind Naruto, peeking past his shoulder.

Kiba stopped laughing in an instant, as he stared between Naruto and the mysterious white haired girl in shock, "Na-naruto and a girl in an apartment alone?!" Kiba stuttered out in complete shock.

"Na-naruto-kun," Hinata whispered softly to herself in complete shock.

"The mission report stated that we were to teach Naruto and Yuki-san how to dance, surely this is expected," Shino said emotionlessly.

Giving Hinata a small worried glance Kurenai spoke up, "Uzumaki Naruto, the Hokage sent us here to instruct you in the art of dancing."

"I see, I'm sorry, please come in, the apartment is very messy though," Naruto said swinging the door open.

The first thing team 8 noticed was that Naruto and Yuki were holding hands, but it was also bounded rather awkwardly and tightly by ropes. Naruto and Yuki led team 8 into the small apartment, towards the kitchen. Team 8 could see two futon laid out on the floor, signifying that the two was sleeping close together, albeit a small divider was placed in between the two futons. The kitchen only had four seats, in which Naruto, Yuki, Kiba and Hinata took. Shino and Kurenai stood as they began briefing over the mission. Kiba started first, being the loudest, and the most curious besides Hinata. "Naruto, who's the cutey?" Kiba asked.

"This is Hikari Yuki, she is well, my partner now I guess," Naruto replied sounding unsure, looking at Yuki for help.

"I don't know how to answer so why don't you just give the blunt answer you gave to Ino-san, Shikamaru-kun, Chouji-kun and Asuma-san," Yuki replied.

"Ah, well, I guess I'm her saviour too, she'll die if I don't hold onto her hands," Naruto added.

_Are they for real?_ Kurenai thought to herself with one raised eyebrow.

_That's just stupid, who are they fooling?_ Kiba thought.

_Is that so, as expected of Naruto-kun_. Hinata thought to herself.

…_As expected of Naruto, I guess._ Shino thought silently to himself.

Seeing the serious look on Yuki and Naruto's face Kiba asked, "You guys are serious?"

"Why wouldn't we be?" Naruto asked.

"But that's just absurd, surely you can't be serious, I mean, there is no way holding hands can prevent death, especially with no logical explanation," Kiba reasoned.

"Kiba-san, is it," Yuki began as Kiba nodded in reply. "I assure you there is a reasonable explanation, but, it is classified information, as of right now we can not give you the answer to that question," Yuki replied calmly, remembering what Naruto told her about his role as a jinchuuriki being kept a secret from the younger generation.

"I-I see," Kiba said at Yuki's answer. "U-um, may I ask the reason why you guys are learning how to dance? Besides that, I heard you're giving up missions for training, Naruto, why?"

Hinata listened closely with interest; after all, this was something concerning her precious Naruto-kun. Kurenai was interested too, as was Shino, although his expression and posture would never suggest as such. "Hmm, we're trying to learn how to fight together while still holding hands, so Kakashi-sensei told us to learn how to dance, quote he, to learn to move as one," Naruto replied. "As for the reason I'm dropping missions, I can't fight while holding onto Yuki's hand, so I decided I needed to do training before I rejoin the team."

"Wait, Naruto, you don't mean you're trying to become a ninja despite having to fight with the handicap of holding onto Yuki-san's hand as well, are you?" Kurenai spoke up in surprised.

"Yuki is not a handicap, and I intend to do such a thing, not only that, I intend to become Hokage," Naruto replied seriously.

"I see, you really can't let go of each other's hands, I understand, we won't question you anymore, let's get on with your training," Kurenai said.

"Thank you, Kurenai-sensei," Naruto and Yuki said thankfully in unison, as they both stood up and bowed in gratitude.

"There is no need to thank me, this is a mission after all, really, if anyone, you should thank these three who is coming along with us," Kurenai said.

"Right, Thank you, Kiba, Shino, and Hinata-chan," Naruto said to each of them.

"Thank you, Kiba-san, Shino-san and Hinata-san," Yuki followed right after.

"It's no problem, right, Hinata?" Kiba asked.

"A-ah, yeah," Hinata replied.

Shino simply nodded in their direction, indicating that he accepted their thanks. "You know, I never knew team missions started this early," Naruto said thoughtfully.

"What are you talking about, Naruto, team missions always starts at six, it's the same with any other team," Kiba said, looking at Naruto as if he grew a second head.

"Wh-what, that lazy ass Kakashi-sensei! No wonder we have to do missions at such an abnormal rate, I knew something was going on, to think he missed three hours of mission time!" Naruto yelled out angrily.

_That sounds like Kakashi alright_. Kurenai though with a sweat drop, remembering all the times Kakashi was late for missions.

Suddenly, Naruto's stomach began to grumble. "Um, will it be fine if we ate breakfast first?" Naruto asked.

"Sure, we haven't eaten yet as well," Kurenai replied.

"Right let's go to Ich-," Naruto began before Yuki hurriedly interrupted.

"Kurenai-sensei, why don't you choose where we eat," Yuki interrupted with a huff, having managed to stop from having to eat more ramen.

"Oh sure, I know a good shop I go often with my friend," Kurenai said.

"Does it have ramen?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not sure, it might," Kurenai said as Yuki let out a breath of relief she was holding.

"Yuki, why does it seem like you don't want to eat ramen," Naruto asked with narrowed eyes.

"That's because I don't, I've eaten ramen for the last 2 days, anymore and I'll get sick for sure," Yuki replied bluntly.

"That won't happen, I've only been eating ramen since I was a kid," Naruto retorted.

"Kurenai-sensei is nice enough to use her free time to help us learn. How could you refuse to let her choose what to eat," Yuki said.

"Fi-fine, just for breakfast!" Naruto said with a frown.

"Yes!" Yuki said pumping her arm in a small guts pose at her victory, team 8 watched with sweat drops, unsure what was going on.

"We'll get going as soon as we get prepared," Naruto said as he dragged Yuki to the bags of clothes, as the two picked up their set of outfit, got rid of the ropes binding their hands and headed into the washroom.

Team 8 watched silently. "You don't think they," Kiba said somewhat red in the face.

"Naruto-kun wouldn't do that," Hinata said quickly.

"Yeah, but Yuki-chan might," Kiba said as Hinata got worried.

"I highly doubt it, that divider was most likely set up by Yuki-san, it is reasonable to believe she isn't that open of a girl," Shino spoke up.

It took about 10 minutes, as the two exited the bath room with Naruto complaining. "How can it take that long to change your clothes and get yourself prepared, seriously," Naruto muttered as he and Yuki walked out of the bath room.

"That wasn't long, what you were doing was just too short, I happen to be normal," Yuki replied as the two glared briefly at each other before turning away with a huff.

"Um, shall we get going?" Kurenai asked.

"Yeah, I'm sorry that took an hour," Naruto gritted out.

"That was hardly an hour, I doubt it was even fifteen minutes," Yuki shot back.

The group followed Kurenai to the restaurant she suggested for breakfast. Taking a seat, Naruto began to scan the menu. "The-there isn't ramen," Naruto stated with a large frown.

"Isn't that good, now you can eat something healthy for once," Yuki said, as Naruto glared at her.

"U-um, Na-naruto-kun, I thi-think Yuki-chan is right, eating too much ramen is unhealthy," Hinata said stuttering and nervous.

"Hmph, fine, I'll eat something else, just because Hinata-chan said so," Naruto said with a huff as he scanned the menu. This time it was Yuki's turn to glare briefly at Naruto.

_It's like a war zone on that side of the table_. Kiba thought to himself, noticing the tension between Naruto and Yuki.

The group ordered and began talking, Kiba, being the curious one asked how Naruto and Yuki met. Naruto began telling the story of the meeting between him and Yuki yet again. "Hahaha, you screwed up big time, as expected of the dead last," Kiba said laughing at Naruto's tale. "Right boy?" Kiba said, asking Akamaru. Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Kiba-kun, that's not nice," Hinata said softly.

"Haha, but he went and almost screwed up the mission, as expected of Naruto, I guess," Kiba replied, still laughing.

"He-hey, shut up, I would have caught up to them if Yuki wasn't lying on the floor than," Naruto retorted.

"So you're saying it's my fault you messed up?" Yuki asked calmly.

"Y-," Naruto began before stopping. _This is one of those times where I say something stupid and piss off Yuki, better think it through first_. Naruto thought. "N-no, it was my fault," Naruto admitted, as Kiba laughed, but Naruto smiled a little when he noticed Yuki's smile.

_Those two might be closer than I first thought_. Kurenai thought as she noticed the brief exchange of smile.

_Naruto-kun_… Hinata thought to herself, seeing the exchange between Yuki and Naruto.

The meal continued in peace, even Kiba noticed the fact there was less tension between Yuki and Naruto now. _Did something happen?_ Kiba thought silently to himself before shrugging as he continued eating.

After the meal and the bill, the group left the restaurant and made their way to the training field where the lessons will begin. Arriving at the large plane, Naruto and Yuki stood before team 8, as they prepared to receive their instruction.

"Um, Kurenai-sensei, will you be teaching us?" Naruto asked.

"Nope, team 8 was chosen for this mission, because Hinata, Kiba and Shino all know how to dance, as they are from one of the many Konoha clans," Kurenai replied. "Not that I don't know, but I'll just stay back and watch, while they instruct you," Kurenai added.

"Right, Hinata, let's go!" Kiba said with a grin.

"U-um, i-I don't th-think I can dance that well," Hinata replied nervously, poking and twirling her two index fingers.

"I'm sure you're great at it, besides, there is no way in hell I'm dancing with Shino," Kiba encouraged.

"Hmph, I wouldn't want to dance with you either, Kiba," Shino quipped softly.

"Shut it, bug boy," Kiba replied.

"U-um, I don't think I can do it," Hinata said yet again.

"Hinata-chan, I'm sure you'll be great, way better than dog breath over there," Naruto said loudly giving Hinata a foxy grin and thumbs up.

Hinata blushed heavily at the praise as she nodded timidly. Yuki noticed Hinata's reaction to Naruto's praise. _Could Hinata-chan possibly have a crush on this idiot?_ Yuki thought to herself, as she stared at Hinata, before glancing at Naruto from the corner of her eyes. _Well, he seems absolutely clueless, but than again, he is probably the densest person I've ever seen. I guess I'm glad that there are others that can see him for who he is_. _My presence around Naruto might have ruined any chance they have together, some how I feel like I destroyed something that could potentially be beautiful._ Yuki continued thinking, a frown on her face.

"Hey, Yuki, are you paying attention?" Naruto asked loudly snapping Yuki out of her thoughts.

"Wh-, sorry, I wasn't paying attention," Yuki replied softly as she turned back to Kiba and Hinata, as the two slowly began to instruct them step by step the basics of dancing. (A/N: They're learning how to Waltz)

Naruto and Yuki got into the exact stance and position as Hinata and Kiba, before the two clumsily began to imitate their steps. The two of them took three steps before Naruto stepped onto Yuki's foot. "Sorry," Naruto said.

"It's no problem, it'll be abnormal for us to get it on our first try anyways," Yuki reassured.

"You guys just need to start off slow, you'll slowly get the rhythm with practice," Kurenai said.

"Yes, Kurenai-sensei," Naruto and Yuki replied in unison.

The rest of the day, till 5, the two danced and danced and danced some more and they were steadily improving. They were moving slowly, but they were no longer tripping or stepping onto each other's feet. "You guys have the basic form down, I can see the vast improvement in your movements, you just need to keep practicing and build up that rhythm," Kurenai said, Yuki and Naruto was on the floor, both rubbing their sore legs with their free hands. "Our mission to teach you guys the basic ends today, so good luck with the rest of your training, if you need anymore help I'll be happy to help," Kurenai continued.

Naruto and Yuki stood up before bowing, "Thank you for everything today, Kurenai-sensei, Kiba(-san), Shino(-san) and Hinata-chan," The two said, bowing once each to team 8.

"Hey, no problem, but you better be stronger the next time I see you, Naruto, I didn't spend a whole day for nothing," Kiba said with a grin. Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Of course," Naruto said as the two hit each other's knuckle with a grin.

"N-naruto-kun, good luck, Yuki-chan too," Hinata said nervously.

"We'll make you proud, Hinata-chan," Naruto replied as Yuki nodded.

Shino gave the two a nod, as the two smiled back. They knew it was Shino's way of saying good luck. "Will you guys be continuing?" Kurenai asked.

"Yeah, we want to get as much training done as possible," Naruto replied.

"Very well, make sure not to over work yourself, alright?"

"Yes, Kurenai-sensei," Naruto and Yuki replied

"Good, we'll be going now, see you guys later," Kurenai said.

"See you later," Kiba said one last time.

"See you guys," Naruto and Yuki replied with a wave as team 8 left. "So, you ready to continue?" Naruto asked.

"Ready when you are," Yuki replied.

The two began dancing as they started talking. "You know, I don't even know that much about you, tell me about yourself, before I met you" Naruto said sounding curious.

"Hmm, my life isn't that exciting, but I guess I'll try to tell you what I can," Yuki replied with a thoughtful look. "Where to begin," Yuki whispered softly to herself. "I don't remember the details very well, but, I do remember I used to live in a small wooden house by a small lake with my parents," Yuki began with a reminiscing smile. "I never met my grandparents, they passed away shortly after I was born, my father was a ninja as you already know, and he was a jounin from Kumo. I remember we moved around often because my father left Kumo to be with my mother, he became a missing-nin. I don't remember how exactly he looked, I was still young than, but I do remember I admired my father, he was strong, brave, and he was kind, he never treated my mother and I bad, although he knew of our origin. He could have lived a long life, but he sacrificed bits and bits of it to prolong my mother's, in the end he passed away before my mother," Yuki continued with a solemn expression.

Naruto's expression softens but he kept quiet as Yuki continued her tale. The pair never stopped dancing and slowly they were getting used to the feeling, despite moving slowly.

"My mother was beautiful, she was kind, she was gentle, and I remember I always dreamed to grow up into someone like her. In every village we visited my mother would be the one at home, she would teach me to write, to read and she taught me to fight, I think the reason she did it when I was at such a young age was because she knew my father and her time on earth was short. I guess it was her way of protecting me. I still remember how tough the training was for a small child like me, I remember deep inside that I wish that I could play around like the village children my age. My mother was always kind and gentle, but I never dared complain to her, because she gave off this aura that screamed 'no non-sense'," Yuki continued finishing with a small giggle. "Now that I think about it, that's a little contradictory isn't it? How could she both be kind and gentle, yet have an aura that frighten little children," Yuki added.

"Yeah, I guess it is a little," Naruto replied with a soft smile as the two stared at each other.

Yuki blushed slightly as she drops her head down and continued. "Hmm, where was I, right, my mother taught me everything while my father went to work in the villages to bring food onto our table. Life was peaceful, it was a little tough with all the training, but at the end of the day it was all good, I guess. Things began to change when I was 5. My father passed away during that year, on February 23. Someday, can we go visit their graves? I want to change the flowers around it," Yuki said pausing to ask Naruto.

"That's a stupid question, of course we'll go," Naruto said with a grin, as Yuki returned it.

"Shortly after my father's death, my mother soon fell ill as well. It wasn't until my sixth birthday that she became so ill that she was no longer able to move from her bed. The village we were at was kind, everyone worked together and hired a great medic, but even than, my mother's curse was at it's limits, there was no chance for survival, unless she were to use Dorein on humans to prolong her death. My mother swore to never use that move after my father's death, and soon she succumb to the power of the curse and passed away. I cried a lot on the day of her passing, I cried even more at her funeral, perhaps even more than when my father passed away. Maybe it was because I realized that at that moment on, I was an orphan, and I was alone. But I had the love from the villagers, who looked after me like I was their own daughter, so I wasn't as alone as I thought. My loneliness can hardly compare to your own," Yuki paused as she gave Naruto's hand a comforting squeeze.

"Hahahaha, that's not true, sure I was alone, but at least I never experienced the pain of losing my parents, that must be very tough," Naruto said, trying to laugh off the matter, but the two stopped dancing when Yuki took a small step forward and placed her head on Naruto's shoulder.

"You idiot, don't try to laugh it off," Yuki whispered softly.

"I-it was tough, everyday felt like hell to me, I cried a lot, looking back now, I'm surprised I didn't crack under all the hate," Naruto muttered softly and honestly as he placed his head on Yuki's shoulder, the hand on her waist moving to the small of her back and pushing her closer, as the two hug awkwardly. The two remained in the same position for about a minute before Yuki's eyes widened in shock, as she took a step back, still making sure to hold on to Naruto's hand.

"So-sorry, I got a little too close," Yuki said embarrassed, she was red on the face.

"Not at all, I think I needed that," Naruto replied with a smile. "Shall we keep dancing? You still have to finish your story."

"Ye-yeah," Yuki said. _When Naruto isn't acting like an idiot and act more mature, he's like a different person_. Yuki thought to herself. "Well, my life became pretty boring than, there isn't much to add onto it. As you know, I kept up my training after my mother's death, the villagers looked after me, and I befriended many of the children, some you saw before we left the village. I guess the most interesting thing that happened the last few years is at the age of ten. I was born with black hair, inherited from my father, I don't know if it was the curse or what, but at the age of ten, my hair suddenly lost all its color, becoming the snow white you see today. The years after that, the curse began acting up, perhaps the lost of my natural hair color was the first step, but I began to grow weaker, I grew sick, and three years later, I was near death, until the day I found you, no, you found me," Yuki finished with a small pant. "Hehe, my throat is a little sore after all that talking," Yuki said softly.

"Hmm, you sure sound like a vampire to me, don't tell me you hate sunlight too," Naruto said with a foxy grin.

"Not at all, but now that you mention it, I remember my mother saying how much she hates the sunlight, maybe you aren't that far off with that suggestion. I guess I lucked out," Yuki replied with a grin. "S-so um, could you tell me your past?" Yuki asked softly, sounding a little nervous.

"A-ah, look at the sky, we've been dancing for so long we've lost track of time, we should go eat dinner," Naruto said hurriedly changing the topic as he looked up into the sky. "I'll tell you another time," Naruto added.

"Ah, sure," Yuki said softly. _I see, he doesn't want to bring it up, I won't push him than._ Yuki thought.

The two had danced till the sun was down, and the sky was turning black. They made their way slowly back to the village for dinner. "My legs have never ached this much before," Yuki said as the two walked through the streets.

"Yeah, this is worse than running a lap around the village," Naruto agreed.

"I can't wait to get a nice shower," Yuki said with a yawn. "By the way, isn't this path the way towards Ichiraku's ramen," Yuki asked.

"Yeah, we're going there right now," Naruto said before he was pulled back by Yuki who stopped in her tracks.

"Naruto, I won't ask for much, bu-but, can we alternate the days between eating ramen and eating something else?" Yuki asked softly.

"No wa-," Naruto was about to reply before stopping when he noticed Yuki's teary eyes staring back at him. "Th-that's not fair," Naruto said taking a step back. Naruto bit his lips and tried to look away, but Yuki followed after him, staring at him with those damn eyes of hers. "Fi-fine, we'll eat some place else today!" Naruto said with a loud sigh.

"Yay, I lo-," Yuki began before stopping, "You're the best," Yuki corrected herself. But Naruto was no longer paying attention as he was grumbling to himself, berating himself for giving in so easily. _I'm so stupid, what's the point of getting embarrassed over saying something like that_ Yuki thought as she walked along side Naruto.

The two went to the restaurant they ate with team 8 earlier in the morning, as it was the only shop Yuki knows beside Ichiraku.

-

In another place within Konoha, a bar where all chunin and jounin frequents, Kakashi was sitting in a corner with Asuma while reading his favourite little orange book. "Kakashi, I heard that your team is missing a member," Asuma said trying to start a conversation with the silent copy-nin.

"Hmm, yeah, Naruto is currently taking a month break," Kakashi replied without looking up from the book.

"Could it have-," Asuma began before a loud voice interrupted him.

"My eternal rival, Kakashi, how can you read that type of book in this bar when you should be enjoying yourself?" A loud voice yelled out. "I challenge you, to a drinking match!"

"Did you say something?" Kakashi asked calmly, looking up from his book.

"Ohh, how hip you are my eternal rival!" The man had a bowl hair cut, very thick eyebrows and was wearing a tight green spandex. He is Maito Gai, the green beast of Konoha, a famous taijutsu expert.

Asuma sweat drop as Gai continued to yell nonsense, and Kakashi continued to read without listening to him. Gai soon took a seat at the table, now slightly more silent. The ringing of a bell signalled another patron as Asuma took a look. "Hey Kurenai, over here," Asuma said with a wave towards the black haired jounin.

When Kurenai took a seat, Kakashi looked up from his book. "How did their training go?" Kakashi asked Kurenai.

"Very well, by the time I left they were already dancing within rhythm, albeit a little slow, give them a day or two and they'll have it down perfectly," Kurenai replied.

Gai and Asuma looked confused at the exchange between the two jounin. "Um, mind if I ask what you two are talking about?" Asuma asked.

"Team 8 and I, we were given the mission to teach Naruto and Yuki to dance," Kurenai explained.

"Yuki, that's the girl with Naruto, right? Naruto said they couldn't let each other's hands go or she'll die," Asuma said.

"Hahaha, youth, what an interesting student you have, Kakashi," Gai said with a chuckle. "But surely he is joking."

"I don't think so Gai, the reason Naruto is learning to dance is because he intends to fight while holding onto this girl's hand," Kurenai replied.

"Naruto is not joking, if he lets go of Yuki's hand, she will die within a day, that I have no doubt," Kakashi replied. "And before I continue, Kurenai, I told you smut is knowledge, where do you think I came up with the idea of learning rhythm by dancing," Kakashi said with a small chuckle.

Kurenai glared at Kakashi. "As if trash like that could ever be knowledge," Kurenai retorted, vein throbbing on her forehead.

"Anyways, I have given Naruto and Yuki a month to create a style of fighting while handing each other's hand. I believe if it's them, they will surprise me. Naruto is Konoha's number one surprising ninja after all," Kakashi said with confidence.

"Hmm, learning to fight while holding the hands of another, Naruto-kun's fire of youth burns brightly," Gai said with fire in his eyes.

"What do you intend to do after his month is up?" Asuma asked.

"I will spar against them. Naruto said he will become stronger than he ever was than when he was alone, and that was the condition. If Naruto is able to become stronger he will remain as a ninja, if he does fail, I will personally request for the Hokage to retire him," Kakashi said.

"Th-that's crazy, Kakashi. Surely you know how hard it is to learn taijutsu and become proficient at it. But for Naruto and Yuki, they will have to create their own style from scratch, surely one month is not enough," Gai said in complete shock.

"I agree, that is asking too much Kakashi," Asuma and Kurenai agreed.

"Believe in Naruto and Yuki, they will surprise the ninja world, at least that's the feeling I get when I see them," Kakashi replied calmly.

"I see, I won't question your judgement my eternal rival, but I wish to witness this spar, I want my team to see it too, surely it will serve to inspire them to work harder than even before," Gai said.

"Yeah, I'm sure my team would want to see the result of their training, they did help their training," Kurenai added.

"If they do complete their training, I want Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino to see them, it might get them to try harder in their training," Asuma said with a nod.

"Very well, let's hope my feeling isn't wrong," Kakashi said before turning back to his book.

-

Preview for Chapter 3: _The results of our training… we'll blow their expectations away!_

A/N: I must say I suck at writing scenes like that whole comfort scene near the end. Oh well, hopefully it doesn't get passed off as too darn corny. However, I did enjoy writing this chapter and to flesh out Yuki's past. Hinata's meeting with Yuki. I tried to keep it reasonably in her character, so I hope no one expected full blown jealousy or anything. Until next chapter!


	4. The results of their efforts

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: I'm going to time skip one month ahead, as going through their complete training could easily go on for a long time, and as of yet, the story hasn't even entered its first real arc, that being the Zabuza arc.

**Double Arts**

Chapter 4: The results of their efforts

Naruto and Yuki continued their training for the rest of the month. They danced and danced for a week straight. By the fourth day, Naruto and Yuki decided that they had the motion perfected on land, so they took it a step further by dancing on top of water to kill two birds with one stone, by working on chakra control and their rhythm at once. By the end of the week Naruto and Yuki had perfected their rhythm. They were able to dance with their eyes closed without losing any speed. Naruto's control has vastly improved, as he is now able to walk on water with minimal concentration. The two changed their training after one week, seeking to assimilate the result of their prior training into their fighting style. The two also acquired gravity tags, a special form of weight training developed by a seal and genjutsu expert. The tag was a genjutsu seal that affects the brain, making it think the body was heavier than it truly is. This helped developed speed and strength. Yuki surprisingly also did the weight training. The tags were expensive, but the results were beneficial, and the ability to adjust the weight at will was a big overall advantage over standard weights. Naruto and Yuki improved in leaps and bounds, their fighting style slowly took form, as they continuously sparred against Naruto's clones. It proved a difficult challenge as the gravity tag did not affect the clones. Besides sparring and improving their taijutsu forms, the two slowly began working on their ninjutsu.

**Kage bunshin** was an excellent technique, but Naruto was unable to create clones that come out **Henge** into Yuki. Therefore, their opponents would be able to identify the real pair amidst the group before they could be hidden. To solve this problem, Yuki learned **Henge** as well, transforming into Naruto during the creation of the clones, and dropping it as the clones **Henge**. They decided not to have Yuki remain as Naruto, because Naruto felt it was weird having to dance with himself. Yuki also learned **Kage Bunshin**, but was not to use it unless absolutely necessary, as she did not have the same abnormal supply of chakra as Naruto to create **Kage Bunshin** like they were nothing. Seeing as though the two of them knew no other techniques, they worked on symmetry and forms, trying to find the way to get the greatest results while using their techniques. Lastly, they worked heavily on **Yuukai**, the greatest technique the two could perform in their situation. The effects of **Yuukai** were incredible, as their physical abilities doubled, their chakra becomes intermix, forming one giant pool, lastly they gain a telepathic connection, being able to share their thoughts. Sadly, after one month, their training only lengthened the effect of **Yuukai** to five seconds. Once the five seconds were up, they become completely disorientated, becoming an easy target for anyone as they are barely able to move for a minute. They are able to use **Yuukai** continuously, but the after effects were so dangerous they decided to keep it as a last minute measure. Naruto had the idea of using **Yuukai** with Yuki's clones and his clones, but the clones were unable to sychronize properly, exploding in a violent wave of chakra. This became their version of **Kage Bunshin Bakuretsu**, currently their most destructive attack.

Besides taijutsu and ninjutsu training, Naruto and Yuki also focused on one last important factor in their new style, the ability to use either hand. It took a lot of work, and even now it was still awkward, but the two alternated between using each of their dominate hands to eat and to do other daily things. Naruto's accuracy with his dominate hand with throwing shuriken was 9/10 times bull eye. With his other hand he was able to train until he had a bull eye rate of 7/10 times. Yuki on the other hand was horrible, having received no prior training in how to throw a shuriken. As such with both hands her accuracy rating fluctuated between 3/10 times to 5/10 times. Naruto had, through sheer determination to not let his ramen go cold, mastered somewhat awkwardly to use his left hand to eat, although it wasn't his dominate hand.

-

Naruto was the first to wake up as the morning sun shone through the blinds. He was lying on a bed, as he sat up and yawned. Sarutobi had done as he had said and brought a new and larger apartment for the two. To be honest, it was a little too big. There were about three extra guest rooms the two didn't use after all. The apartment was far cleaner, as Yuki was around to keep Naruto under control. Naruto turned his head to the left and saw Yuki still sleeping peacefully on her bed. Naruto wasn't sure how, but Yuki's wild habits have mostly stopped, although there were still days when she still kicked and punched the heck out of Naruto during the night. The two were sleeping on separate beds pushed together, their hands in the middle, wrapped like always to prevent the loss of contact. Naruto still remembered how embarrassed the two of them were when they had to sleep pretty much on the same bed, even if it was two beds pushed together. They had originally slept with their beds apart, but during the night Naruto or Yuki dragged the other off the bed and onto the floor. Weeks of sleeping like this and the two got over the embarrassment. Thinking back over the results of their training brought a smile onto Naruto's face. Although it wasn't perfect, he believed they had achieved an incredible result, he was certain he had grown stronger with Yuki by his side, than he ever was alone. That confidence in their training only served to make Naruto excited, as he couldn't wait to show Kakashi, Sasuke and especially Sakura just how strong they have gotten. "Hey, Yuki, it's time to wake up, it's the time for our spar with Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said softly, as he stared at Yuki's peaceful form. The two have gotten much closer over the month. Being stuck together like that probably did it to people, although Yuki was still violent as ever whenever he did something stupid, leading him to get what he now calls the infamous Yuki Heel Stomp.

Yuki stirred slowly, as she brought her free hand up to rub her eyes gently to get the sleep out. She slowly sat up with a yawn, as she blinked to adjust to the light of the sun. "Morning," Yuki said softly as she turned towards Naruto with a small smile. "Oh good, I didn't keep you up last night, that wouldn't be good considering what is happening today," Yuki continued as she tried to flatten and straighten the bed hair she always get in the morning with her free hand.

"Morning," Naruto replied. "Yeah, I'm in top form right now, I'm confident we'll completely blow away Kakashi-sensei's expectation," Naruto said confidently as he rubbed the bright of his nose with a foxy smile.

"Yeah, I feel that we've come a long way, we're no longer the same clumsy duo as we were a month ago," Yuki agreed with a grin of her own.

The two got off the beds as they prepared for the day. "Is today ramen again?" Naruto asked as the two brushed their teeth.

"Hmm, no, it's not,' Yuki replied with a large victorious grin as Naruto had a disappointed look. "But, we'll make an exception today, we'll have breakfast at Ichiraku, but, only today," Yuki continued with a smile as Naruto whooped in joy.

"Hurry, hurry, we have to get going now than," Naruto said hurriedly.

"Wa-wait, I have to finish brushing my teeth and fix my bed hair," Yuki said.

"Ahhh," Naruto whined as he finished brushing and washed his mouth with water, slumping against the sink as he sat on the floor. "You take hours to fix that damn bed hair, it happens every morning," Naruto said with a pout.

"Tsk, you talk as if I want to fix it every morning," Yuki said sounding slightly irritated, her bed hair was a touchy topic it seems.

And so after an hour, to Naruto, whereas in reality it being only around five minutes, the duo left their new apartment and made their way to Ichiraku's ramen. The two entered the stall as Naruto said loudly, "Old man, one miso ramen please."

"Ohh, Naruto, I thought today was supposed to be no ramen day," Teuchi said in surprise when he saw the duo enter.

"Yuki said its fine since it's a special occasion," Naruto said with a grin.

"Here Naruto-kun, Yuki-chan, have some tea," Ayame said as she placed two cups of tea before the duo.

"Thank you," Naruto and Yuki replied as they began sipping the tea.

"No problem."

"Hahaha, Yuki-chan is sounding more and more like a girlfriend, Naruto you lucky bum," Teuchi said as the two had a look of surprised as they sprayed out the tea they were drinking.

"Th-that is not true, Teuchi-san, an-and you know it," Yuki said with a small blush.

"Hahaha, is it now," Ayame joined in teasingly as Yuki looked down embarrassed.

"Of course it's not true, Yuki and I are just friends, the one I like is Sakura-chan," Naruto said out loud.

_Oh my god, how dense are you Naruto/Brat, besides that, are you an idiot, why would you say something like that_! Teuchi and Ayame thought in absolute surprise, wincing in their mind as they waited for a Yuki Heel Drop. They did not expect Yuki to calmly drink her tea and not react. _Eh_?

"I think I'll have a special today, Teuchi-san," Yuki said after taking a sip of her tea.

"E-eh, y-yeah, alright," Teuchi said sounding still somewhat surprised.

"Y-yuki-chan?" Ayame whispered softly, sounding worried.

Yuki turned to her and gave her a smile, "It's okay, I'm alright," Yuki mouthed back softly.

The duo finished their ramen, Yuki at one bowl and Naruto at twenty bowls. Paying the bill they left the stall with a wave. "That brat has got to be the densest and most idiotic person I have ever seen," Teuchi said in disbelief when Naruto and Yuki were gone.

"I hate to admit it, but I must agree this time," Ayame agreed. "I feel a little bad for Yuki-chan," Ayame said softly.

"Well, it's their problem to solve. The brat sure was excited about something though, wonder what the special occasion was," Teuchi said with a shrug.

-

The duo arrived at the bridge at 9 am sharp, as Naruto waved madly at Sakura, "Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan, I've missed you so much!" Naruto said excitedly as Yuki followed silently behind him. "And I see you're here too, Sasuke-teme," Naruto said with a frown when he saw Sasuke leaning against the pillar by the bridge.

"Naruto and Yuki, you're still together?" Sakura said bewildered. "Holding hands still I see," Sakura added when she saw their hands.

"Haruno-san, Uchiha-san," Yuki greeted when she and Naruto stopped. _Does she still not understand our situation_?_ What have Kakashi-sensei been telling them_? Yuki thought to herself.

"So, Naruto and Yuki, what have you been doing this past month, you know how annoying those missions were with just the two of us, Naruto! I sure hope you weren't having fun together somewhere, while Sasuke and I worked our ass off," Sakura said, she sounded irritated and pissed off.

_What the hell does Naruto see in her_? _Would Naruto still be trying to date this girl although a kind and gentle person like Hinata-chan likes him if I wasn't around_?

Yuki thought. _In fact, what the hell do I see in this dense idiot_? _Maybe these feelings I have are indirectly created because he's the only thing keeping me alive._. Yuki continued her wild thoughts before dropping her head and staring at the ground. _Who am I kidding…?_

"N-no we were-," Naruto began before he was interrupted.

"They were training for the last month," Kakashi said as he appeared in a poof. "I forgot to tell you two, that was my mistake," Kakashi said with a small chuckle. "Now let's see," Kakashi said rubbing his chin with a hand as he stared at Naruto and Yuki. "You guys have gotten farther apart than before, what happened?" Kakashi asked.

"H-huh? That's impossible," Naruto said as he turned to Yuki, "Right?"

"A-ah, yeah," Yuki replied weakly, sounding a little unsure.

_There seems to be some internal conflict going on, well, hopefully it doesn't affect their performance_. Kakashi thought to himself. "Right, we'll be moving to training field 27 to begin our test."

"Test?" Sakura asked.

"Ah right, another thing I forgot to mention, I'll be sparring Naruto and Yuki to see the result of their training," Kakashi replied.

"As if a dope can hope to fight you alone, Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke said arrogantly.

"I'm not alone Sasuke-teme, I'll be fighting with Yuki and I'll make you eat those damn words," Naruto said confidently.

"Relying on the power of a girl, as expected of a deadlast," Sasuke said haughtily.

"Hey, hey, stop arguing you two, it's the first time we've seen each other in a month, let's get along," Kakashi said.

"Tsk," Sasuke said as he turned away from Naruto who stuck his tongue out at him childishly.

The team began making their way to Training field 27. On the way Naruto turned worriedly to Yuki. "What's wrong Yuki, if you're nervous, don't be, we'll be fine," Naruto said confidently giving her hand a squeeze.

"Ye-yeah, it's okay, I'm fine," Yuki replied with a smile, although it was a little forced, and Naruto could see it.

"You're not tricking me, I know something is wrong, tell me what it is," Naruto said, sounding a little more forceful this time.

Yuki turned away from Naruto and closed her eyes. _What the hell am I doing, this is the worst time to let my feelings get in the way. Calm down, Yuki, the spar comes before your stupid feelings_. Yuki berated herself as she turned back to Naruto. "It's a secret, but I'm fine now," Yuki said with a grin.

"Women are so weird," Naruto said with a sigh of relief.

"If we aren't jumping from branch to branch right now, I would stomp your feet," Yuki said in a playful tone.

"That sounds more like the Yuki I know," Naruto replied.

"What? You think you're some kind of expert on me now?" Yuki asked playfully.

"Of course," Naruto replied in the same playful tone.

"If that's what you think," Yuki said in a mysterious tone as the group landed in Training field 27.

"This will be where we spar," Kakashi said with a grin underneath his face mask as he turned around to face his students. _Oh, those two, strange, now they appear far closer than they ever were, interesting, I wonder what happened_. Kakashi thought.

"Kakashi-sensei, are we going to start now?" Naruto asked.

"Nope, we'll have to wait a little while for the rest of the audience," Kakashi replied as Naruto and Yuki looked at him confused.

"Yo, Pinky, Broody, Naruto and Yuki-chan," Kiba said as he landed in the fields with Hinata, Shino and Kurenai.

"Hello, everyone," Hinata said softly.

Shino nodded once while Akamaru barked his greetings. Not a minute later, another team landed, this time being Shikamaru, Ino, Chouji and Asuma. "Yo," Asuma said.

"You're all here to watch us?" Naruto asked bewildered.

"Yeah, how troublesome, making us come all the way here this early and on a day without missions too," Shikamaru replied with a yawn.

"Well, Asuma-sensei said it'll be a great show, not to mention he's treating us to free BBQ afterwards," Chouji said, casually admitting his bribe for dragging Shikamaru here.

"Forehead girl!" Ino said when she saw Sakura.

"Ino-pig," Sakura gritted out as the two glared at each other.

"Sasuke-kun!" Ino said suddenly as she leapt at Sasuke who was did not react in time as Ino hugged him from behind.

"Get off him!" Sakura screeched as she tried to pry Ino off the struggling Sasuke.

"Now we just have to wait for him," Kurenai said with a sweat drop, which was followed by Asuma and Kakashi.

"Team Gai has arrived to see Naruto and Yuki's flames of youth in action today!" Gai announced loudly as his team landed in the clearing. "Lee, it seems we were the last to arrive, this will not do. After this we must run one hundred laps around Konoha so such a thing will never happen again!" Gai said as he turned to a miniature clone of him.

"Yes Gai-sensei!" The so called Lee said as he saluted.

"Make sure to take notes Lee, this will be an interesting match for sure," Gai added.

"Yes Gai-sensei!" Lee said as he pulled out his tiny note book.

"Ah, ah, I'm kind of embarrassed being teamed with these two when the rest of the teams here all appear so normal," A girl with two buns on her head said softly so that only Hyuuga next to her could hear.

"That green spandex wearing freak is Gai, he and his team will be joining us today," Kakashi said to the rest of the group, the genin all had various looks of disgust and horror as they stared at the green spandex twins.

"I'm Tenten, it's nice to meet all of you," Tenten greeted.

"Hyuuga Neji," Neji said with a bored tone.

"I'm Rock Lee," Lee said with a bow before he looked up at Sakura with a blush on his face. He appeared by Sakura in an instant, shocking some of the genin. "Sakura-san, it is a pleasure to see you," Lee said as he began shaking Sakura's hand.

"Geh!" Sakura said as she moved away in horror. "Stay away!"

"Hey you, stay away from Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled with a frown.

_I don't get it, why is everyone attracted to her_? Yuki thought. She was broken out of her thoughts when Naruto stood protectively before her, pushing her behind him. Yuki looked up and saw Lee glancing her way.

"You, don't you dare touch Yuki too," Naruto said with a warning tone.

"Lee!" Gai suddenly yelled as he punched Lee, sending him flying as the genin and jounin stared in absolute shock at the display. "Stop causing so much distraction, you are a guest here to learn!" Gai reprimanded.

"I-I'm sorry Gai-sensei!" Lee said with tears pouring down his eyes.

"Lee!" Gai yelled as well as tears poured down his eyes.

_Oi, oi, what the hell_. It was the thought that went through everyone but Tenten and Neji's minds.

"Arg, why did I come," Tenten whined silently to herself.

"Gai-sensei!" Lee yelled as he ran towards Gai.

"Lee!" Gai yelled as he ran towards Lee.

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!" Lee yelled as the two hugged each other, in front of a sea with sand by their feet.

"Lee."

"Gai-sensei."

"Lee."

"Gai-sensei."

Everyone present, except for Team Gai, rubbed their eyes in disbelief at the mysterious appearance of the beach. _I… think I've gone nuts_. That thought went through their head.

"Why did I come, this is a match between a jounin and two genin, I don't see what the big deal was, it will simply be a massacre, that is fate," Neji said emotionlessly.

"Ahem, sorry to interrupt your, eh, er, bonding moment, but we have a sparring match to start," Kakashi said interrupting the horror before their eyes.

"I apologize, my hip rival, for my student, Lee's distraction," Gai said as he stood up.

_No, no, you're also part of it too_. Everyone said inside their head.

Everyone but Kakashi, Naruto and Yuki made their way away from the center of the clearing, as they stood in a line and watched.

"What the hell is that Naruto doing, why is he still holding Yuki's hand when the spar is about to start," Sakura said flabbergasted.

"Huh, aren't you on their team, Pinky, those two can't let go of each other's hand, otherwise Yuki will die," Kiba replied.

"You don't actually believe that, do you? And don't call me Pinky!" Sakura said angrily.

"Sakura-san, t-t-they aren't joking," Hinata spoke up stuttering.

"Yeah, Forehead-girl, even I know that," Ino said looking at Sakura as if she grew a second head.

"Wh-what, why do you all know? Sasuke-kun, you don't believe it, right?" Sakura said asking Sasuke for help.

"Hmph, I don't care."

"You guys don't believe it, do you?" Sakura asked.

"I don't see why you won't accept it, Sakura, they have no reason to lie to us, so troublesome," Shikamaru said.

"Yeah, those two actually learned to dance from us just so they could learn to move together. They've put all their efforts into learning how to fight as a team, I highly doubt they're lying if they try that hard," Kiba added.

"Learning how to dance?" Sakura repeated.

"Sounds interesting, doesn't it, Shikamaru," Chouji asked.

"It does sound a little interesting." Shikamaru admitted.

"Neji, don't you think what they're saying is pretty interesting, they're actually planning to fight a jounin while holding each other's hand," Tenten said sounding a little excited.

"Ceh, they will only fail, there is no possible way that will work," Neji replied.

"Neji, my eternal rival, how can you say such a thing after Naruto-kun and Yuki-chan put so much effort into their training," Lee reprimand. "Ahhhh, I'm so psyched now, my flames of youth have been raised even higher by Naruto-kun and Yuki-chan. After this I must do 2000 push ups, if I can't do that I'll run ten laps around Konoha on my hands!" Lee said excited, his eyes lighting up with fire.

"What do you think Gai, Kurenai, do you think they've really created a completely new taijutsu style belonging to just them in a month?" Asuma asked.

"I'm not sure," Kurenai replied.

"Surely they have something, that confident look on their faces could only mean such a thing," Gai replied confidently.

Back at the center Naruto and Yuki was staring at Kakashi with complete concentration. "Shall we begin?" Kakashi asked with a grin.

"We're ready when you are," Naruto replied as he and Yuki got into a fighting stance facing each other. Their arms pointing straight forward and the other hands holding each others behind them, almost as if they're preparing to dance. "This time, you won't have time to read your damn perverted book," Naruto said confidently.

_Interesting stance they've taken_. Kakashi thought with an amused smile. "Very well let's start," Kakashi said and the instant he said it the two broke their stance and began rushing towards him, still holding hands of course. _What, they aren't going to dance towards me?_ Kakashi thought with a small chuckle as he too moved forward to meet the two head on. Kakashi's eyes widen slightly when the two suddenly stopped as Naruto twirled around and spun Yuki around towards him, her leg was ready for their two person version of a round house kick. Kakashi lifted up his arm to block it, and was surprised at the force behind it, as he lifted his other hand to push his own forearm to push the leg back. _Ow, that one will leave a bruise. That was a chakra enchanted kick_. Kakashi thought to himself. Suddenly he was caught off guard as he was kicked from the other side, right in the unguarded rib cage. _Damn it, Naruto could attack as well, I completely forgot_! Kakashi thought as he pushed away Naruto's leg and took some distance. _Good thing I managed to lessen the blow at the last minute with some chakra, otherwise that one might have broken my rib cage. When did Naruto learn to reinforce himself with chakra too_? _I see. I shouldn't treat these two as the same two I knew a month ago, they've advanced in a number of ways_. Kakashi thought with a small grin.

Naruto smiled at how well that attack worked. The two were devising a battle plan the day before against Kakashi. Seeing as though the man had covered one side of his field of vision, they decided to use his weak point of being blinded on the left side. Of course, normally such a tactic won't work on a normal one on one, or even when Kakashi was fighting seriously, but, he was still testing them, he wasn't going all out yet. The plan was to have Yuki attack from the right, distracting Kakashi while Naruto could sneak in blows from Kakashi's blind area. Of course Yuki suggested this form of attack, but it was a one trick pony, against Kakashi, it probably wouldn't work again. Naruto and Yuki rushed forward again, and Kakashi was surprised when they abandoned their tactic and entered a straight up brawling match against him. Kakashi wasn't a jounin for nothing as he blocked and evaded and traded punches with the two.

_Th-this is, I'm actually losing this exchange, they aren't faster than me, nor are they stronger individually, but together, their movements are too erratic, I can't keep track of every blow that's coming. When I think I got the flow it changes completely. Kicks, punches, if I lose concentration even for a moment I'll get hit. Not to mention, what's most incredible about this is that they haven't once slowed one another. It's as if they're one person with extra limbs._ Kakashi thought. _And the way their feet and body move, it's like they're dancing, this is unbelievable. To think they've advanced this far in a month, I'll give them a pass, but, I want to see how far along you guys have gotten, Naruto, Yuki_.

_This is good, we've taken the pace, but we're dealing absolutely no damage_. Yuki thought to herself as she and Naruto continued their furious attack on Kakashi.

"Thi-this is incredible, they're actually winning the exchange against a jounin!" Kiba said excitedly.

"They've come a long way," Shino agreed with a nod. "The way they move, you won't believe they started working together a month ago."

"Ye-yeah, it's like watching a dance, the way they fight, there is a certain grace and elegance to it, it isn't simply mindless punches and kicks, every move they make is flowing together with one another, it's incredibly hard to find an opening to something like that unless you're far faster than them," Tenten agreed as she stared with awe.

"Indeed, their flames of youth burns incredibly bright, I'm itching to try my fighting against those two, I want to see how well I'll fare against them," Lee said excitedly.

"That's good Lee, that's a good attitude, some day you will have a chance to fight against them. I too wish to try. It is unbelievable to think these two manage to develop such a style in a single month from nothing. Give them more time to refine it and they will be a force to be reckoned with, not that they aren't now," Gai added. He sounded a little excited too.

"Shikamaru, those two sure are incredible aren't they, they must have practiced hours and hours, I mean the way they move, it's like they're two completely new person than a month ago at Ichiraku's ramen," Chouji said. "Somehow, seeing how much they've improved, I too wish to get stronger."

"Ye-yeah, despite how troublesome it is, I can't help fight this feeling I'm getting," Shikamaru agreed with a small smirk.

"Than we'll train harder, we won't fall behind Naruto and Yuki, especially that dead last!" Ino announced.

"Ha! I knew coming here would be productive, finally they too wish to get stronger," Asuma said with a grin as he pulled out a death stick.

"Don't smoke that in my presense," Kurenai said as Asuma took it out of his mouth instantly.

"Yes mam."

_Naruto-kun, Yuki-chan, you guys are incredible_. Hinata thought with a smile.

"Damn, seeing something that impressive, I'm just itching to train now, I can't let Naruto surpass me," Kiba said with an impressed tone. "We'll train our ass off, right, boy?" Kiba asked, as Akamaru barked in agreement on top of his head.

"Wo-wow, they're so strong," Sakura said in disbelief.

"…," Sasuke stared at the scene before him as he gritted his teeth. _This is impossible, how did that deadlast get so strong, he's actually fighting a jounin head on and winning. N-no, it's not the dope, it's that woman, Yuki was it. She's the reason he has become so much stronger, the source of his strength. If she becomes my partner, I'll obtain that strength, surely she would choose me if I ask, I am after all far stronger than that deadlast. Yes, I need that power in order to kill Itachi, I don't care what I have to do to get stronger._ Sasuke thought as he stared at Yuki.

The exchange had stopped by now as Kakashi, Naruto and Yuki stared at each other. Naruto and Yuki were still tensed up ready for battle when suddenly Kakashi relaxed. "Naruto, Yuki, you two have completely surpassed my expectation. But I want you show me the full extent of your strength," Kakashi said smiling through his mask. "Before that though, tell me that stance you guys did at the start of the battle."

"Oh that, hehe, it's nothing really, I guess it's just our way to get focused," Naruto replied scratching his hair grinning at the praise he received.

"Since we practiced dancing so much, I guess that stance gets us into the trance to fight," Yuki replied grinning, happy that Naruto passed the test.

"I see, and what is the name of your style?" Kakashi asked, as the two looked at him confused.

"What do you mean name, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"What? You guys don't even know how great of an accomplishment you guys have done?" Kakashi asked as the two stared blankly at him. "What you guys are doing, have created, is the first of its kind, you have created what you can call your own taijutsu, naturally it is for the creators to name it," Kakashi explained as Naruto and Yuki's eyes widen in realization.

"Cool! We're so awesome, Yuki, we created our own taijutsu style," Naruto said excitedly as he turned to Yuki with a huge smile. Yuki smiled back. "Hmm, our own name eh, oh how about this, Hikari Yuki and Uzumaki Naruto Ultimate Taijutsu," Naruto said with a proud grin.

Yuki and Kakashi sweat drops at the idiotic name. "Naruto, how about something else, that's just stupid," Yuki stated blatantly.

"Wh-what! Fine! Err, Naruto and Yuki Dance of doom?" Naruto stated.

"That's also stupid," Yuki stated as Naruto frowned as he rubbed his chin with his spare hand, he looked deep in thought.

_The names are so stupid I don't even want to tell him, but Yuki just says it so blatantly, I'm surprised Naruto haven't become angry at her_._ I guess that just shows how close they really are_. Kakashi thought.

"Oh, how about, Yuki and Naruto Three arms, four legs taijutsu," Naruto said with a grin.

"Na-naruto, are you even trying anymore?" Kakashi asked bewildered.

"Wh-what, I am trying, I thought that sounded pretty good," Naruto said with a pout.

"Well, for starters you might want to get rid of our names, that's just stupid," Yuki suggested.

"Fine, why don't you think of a name since you're so good at it, it's not as easy as you think," Naruto said with a huff.

"Hmm, give me a moment," Yuki said as she suddenly became completely silent. "I got it," Yuki said as Naruto and Kakashi turned to look at her. "Double Arts," Yuki finished as Naruto and Kakashi's eyes widen.

"I-I like it," Naruto said. "Double Arts, it's perfect!" Naruto continued excitedly.

"Yes, Double Arts, that's an excellent name, I'm impressed you manage to think of that," Kakashi praised.

"It just popped into my head," Yuki replied modestly.

"Well, enough talking, we have a spar to finish," Kakashi said with a grin.

"Kakashi-sensei, we'll take you down, with Double Arts!" Naruto said with a foxy smirk.

"You're welcome to try Naruto, Yuki, but don't think I'll be that easy," Kakashi replied.

"Yuki, we're doing strategy A," Naruto said as Yuki nodded.

The two leapt back to get some distance as they both faced Kakashi. The two crossed their closest legs, by placing one in front of the other, with their skin in contact the two lets go of their hands. _They can let go of each others hands? N-no, their legs are touching, so the curse is suppressed by skin contact, eh. This means, oh no, if one was that hard to fight, a hundred will make it infinitely more annoying_. Kakashi thought to himself when he saw Naruto making his signature seal.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**!" Naruto yelled.

"**Henge**!" Yuki announced as the field was covered with smoke. The field was suddenly filled with a hundred Naruto. Each clone performed seals for **Henge**, yet again the field was covered in smoke, this time there was an equal amount of Naruto and Yuki.

_I see, the first Henge Yuki did was to disguise herself and the real Naruto amongst the clones, than half the clones henge while she drops hers, now they have successfully pulled off a Kage Bunshin that won't reveal which one is the real one_. Kakashi thought as he began fending off the onslaught of clones.

"Holy, this is quite a battle," Kiba said as he watched. "I can hardly call Naruto the dead last after witnessing his improvement. He has improved leaps and bound."

"Yeah, this isn't the deadlast we know anymore," Ino agreed.

_Naruto has suddenly become this strong, now I'm the weakest one in the team, I need to get stronger too, I can't become a burden in the team_. Sakura thought to herself as she stared at the battle before her.

_Man, to think these two would push me so much that I'm tempted to use the Sharingan, but, this won't do at all, as their sensei, I must show them the vast difference in our strength_. Kakashi thought as he suddenly sped up.

"Wh-what?!" Naruto and clones said in complete surprise as Kakashi suddenly moved faster than before.

_He was still holding back? Or did he just do something?_ Yuki thought as the number of clones slowly began diminishing.

_Kakashi-sensei is as good as I thought_. Naruto thought excitedly.

_This is a step up from my max speed. I'm focusing all my chakra into my legs for speed. I should stop this spar soon, there is no way I can beat them without resorting to moves that'll actually hurt them_. Kakashi thought.

It took about two minutes as the real Naruto and Yuki stood before Kakashi. "One last exchange and we'll stop this spar, I don't want to resort to moves that'll actually hurt you two," Kakashi said.

"I see, Yuki, let's do that, since this is the last move anyways, we'll go out with a bang," Naruto said.

"Fine, although it feels horrible after," Yuki complained slightly.

_They still have a trump card_? Kakashi thought.

The three moved in an instant as they closed the distance. "**Yuukai**." Yuki said as she and Naruto suddenly flashed white, their speed doubling in an instant.

_Damn, no strategy at all, eh, they're just charging me straight on, but this speed, it's impressive, but nothing I can't deal with_. Kakashi thought. When the three met they began exchanging lightning fast blows, with their enchanted speed, the two were proving difficult to fight, as Kakashi focused on defending and blocking. _I'm going to los-_? Kakashi thought when suddenly both Naruto and Yuki collapsed onto their knees. "Eh, what?"

Both Naruto and Yuki had their face in the grass. "Ahhh, I feel like crap," Naruto said.

"That's why I told you we shouldn't have done it,' Yuki complained as she groaned.

"What happened?" Kakashi asked confused.

"We can only hold Yuukai for five seconds, after that we get disoriented from separating, give us around a minute and we'll be fine," Naruto explained groaning.

"I see, I'm guessing you won't use it under normal circumstances," Kakashi said.

"Yeah, the effects are great and all, but this after effect just isn't worth it, although I feel it's only like this because Yuki doesn't know how to do it properly," Naruto replied.

"I'm sorry for not knowing," Yuki said groaning.

"Why? It's not like I blame you for this," Naruto said.

"Hey, are you guys alright? What happened?" Ino yelled as the audience ran up to check up on the three.

"Back lash of their last technique," Kakashi replied for the two. The group watched and within a minute the two sat up.

"I hate going through that," Yuki stated.

"You guys were great, I'm surprised how much you've improved," Chouji said with a grin.

"Yeah, I'm impressed, Naruto, Yuki, you guys were like two completely different people than when we saw you a month ago," Shikamaru added.

"I guess, our dance training worked, I'll give you a passing grade, Naruto, you didn't waste our efforts," Kiba said haughtily.

"Haha, is that so," Naruto said with a grin, happy from the acknowledgement he was receiving.

"But that was incredible, you guys looked like you were dancing out there," Tenten said excitedly.

"Naruto-kun, Yuki-chan, what is this style you have developed yourselves, I wish to know," Lee said excitedly.

"Double Arts," Naruto and Yuki replied with a grin.

"Double Arts, that is an excellent name," Gai praised.

"Yeah, somehow it really does fit," Asuma agreed.

"Double Arts, eh. Naruto, Yuki, if we battle in the future, me and Akamaru will personally defeat your Double Arts!" Kiba announced as Akamaru barked challengingly atop Kiba's head.

"I would love to see you try, Dog breath," Naruto replied accepting the challenge.

"I too as well, Naruto," Shino said as Naruto smiled his way.

"I as well," Lee said excitedly.

"Naruto-kun, Yuki-chan, you guys were great," Hinata said softly.

"Thanks, Hinata-chan," Naruto and Yuki replied.

"Naruto, Yuki, I'm sorry for doubting you guys, after that, I feel stupid for even thinking for a second you guys were lying. It takes an idiot to not see how much work you guys have done. Developing your own fighting style from scratch and in only a month is not a task anyone can say they can do that easily," Sakura said bowing apologetically.

"No problem, Sakura-chan, I never held it against you in the first place, since Kakashi-sensei was too lazy to tell you guys," Naruto said shooting Kakashi a small glare as Kakashi chuckled nervously.

Yuki tried to ignore it but she could feel Sasuke staring at her. _What's wrong with him now?_ Yuki thought.

"Well, I believe we're done for the day, you guys are free to do whatever you want since there is no mission. Mission as a full team starts tomorrow, I'll see you guys here at six," Kakashi said as team 7 nodded.

Everyone said their good byes to each other and was on their way. Naruto and Yuki walked slowly instead of making their way quickly back to the village. "Ahh, I'm tired, Kakashi-sensei is strong as expected," Naruto said out loud with a yawn.

"Yeah, we couldn't get any real hits in even with the gravity tags off, I guess we're no where near jounin level yet," Yuki replied.

"We have the whole day, what do you want to do?" Naruto asked.

"Sleep. I feel like a burden has just been lifted, I want to slack off for the rest of the day."

"Yeah, that sounds like a great idea," Naruto agreed with a nod. "I feel exactly the same, I feel far better than I ever have, maybe because our hard work has been acknowledged," Naruto said with a smile.

"It is an excellent feeling, knowing that our hard work have not been put to waste," Yuki agreed.

The two made their way back to the apartment and went to bed in their ninja outfit, too tired to even change out of it when the built up stress from one month of intense training finally settled in. They slept for the rest of the day, getting a well deserved rest.

-

"Hokage-sama, Naruto and Yuki's training has been completed, and the results have completely surpassed my expectation," Kakashi said respectfully.

"I saw through my crystal ball, those two are certainly impressive, I too did not expect the rate of growth to be this exponential. But Kakashi, there is a problem, that is coming up soon…," Sarutobi said gravely.

-

Preview of chapter 5: _Team 7 is back and stronger than ever. It's time for their comeback mission!_

A/N: I personally loved this chapter. While the general idea of Double Arts were taken from the manga, since it was never actually seen how it was used I had to think of something, and I believe I quite like the result. I believe some people will hate how Sasuke wants Yuki now as well and such, but, I tried to think into perspective how he would actually react in the manga. I believe someone like Sasuke, who wants and needs power would react in this way, I mean, he believes Naruto is inferior to him in everyway, but here comes a brand new Naruto who completely surpasses his imagination. Someone with as much pride as Sasuke would obvious think of an excuse as to why Naruto has grown so much, that being Yuki as the source of his newfound strength. Well, hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	5. The comeback is always the hardest

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

**Double Arts**

Chapter 5: The comeback is always the hardest

Today was one of the rare days where Yuki woke up first. She stirred awake, feeling groggy, as she rubbed her eyes with her free hand. Squinting, she slowly adjusted to the glare of the sun making its way through the blinds. Letting out a huge yawn, Yuki sat up. Suddenly her stomach lets out a huge growl. "What time is it," Yuki whispered softly to herself as she turned to the clock. "It's only seven, still two hours-," Yuki continued before her eyes widened in surprise. "We slept a whole day after the spar!" Yuki said in realization. Yuki turned to Naruto, prepared to wake him up, before she blanched in surprise. Naruto was drooling madly, muttering incoherent words in his sleep. He was apparently having a great dream. "Hate to do this to you, Naruto, but, Wake up!" Yuki whispered softly before yelling.

Naruto shot up in an instant, "Wha-what's going on? An enemy?" Naruto asked turning his head wildly from left to right.

"It's not, but we've been sleeping for too long, it's seven in the morning, we slept for a whole day," Yuki explained.

"Wh-what!" Naruto yelled in surprise before his stomach growled loudly. "I'm hungry!" Naruto whined as he grabbed his stomach. "Ah, but I was having such a good dream," Naruto said with a frown.

"What was it about?" Yuki asked curiously. _Although it doesn't take a genius to know, it probably had something to do with ramen, or Sakura, or both_. Yuki thought.

"It's a secret," Naruto said with a mysterious grin. "Let's go eat," Naruto said.

"Ah, sure," Yuki said a little surprised. _Now I want to know what it's about_.

The two brushed their teeth and changed into a new set of clothes and made their way for breakfast before team meeting. Yuki followed after Naruto silently and was surprised at the path they were taking. "This isn't the way to Ichiraku's ramen."

"Yeah."

"But today is ramen day."

"Its fine, yesterday was supposed to be your turn to choose, but we over slept."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"You're different today," Yuki said as she stared at Naruto, studying him almost.

"I'm still the same, stop looking at me as if I'm some kind of new specie," Naruto said.

"But as the one who has been studying the specie called Uzumaki Naruto for the past month, I thought I have come to know its habit, and picking anything over ramen is not part of it," Yuki said playfully.

"Something happened, alright?" Naruto retorted as he walked faster.

"Hey, you're hiding something," Yuki said with a frown as she walked up next to Naruto at the same speed.

"It's something stupid, I don't even know why, so let's just leave it at that," Naruto explained. _That damn dream, I can't stand looking at ramen right now, otherwise I'll get embarrassed_. Naruto thought with a sigh. _But, I actually really want to eat ramen_. Naruto thought crying inside.

"Fine," Yuki said looking at Naruto confused, noting his sighing.

-

Naruto and Yuki arrived at the bridge before Sasuke and Sakura. They sat by a tree and waited. Sasuke came walking along the path with Sakura following behind him. "Sakura-chan! Morning," Naruto said happily.

"Morning, Yuki, Naruto," Sakura replied.

"Morning," Yuki said nodding Sakura and Sasuke's way.

Sasuke ignored them, as he simply walked towards the bridge, leaned there and brood. They waited there for a short while as Kakashi arrived with a poof. "You're late!" Sakura yelled.

"Sorry about that, I got lost on the road of life you see," Kakashi replied calmly.

"Liar!" Sakura dead panned.

"Ahem, right, let's go report in for missions, team 7 is finally complete again," Kakashi said ignoring Sakura's accusation.

Team 7 arrived at the Hokage tower within minutes. Walking into the mission room, they stood before Sarutobi, and various other chunin responsible for organizing missions. "Old man!" Naruto greeted happily.

"Naruto, what did I say about calling Hokage-sama that?" Iruka reprimanded with a frown.

"Its fine Iruka, I don't think we'll ever get Naruto to stop," Sarutobi said with a small smile. "Now, what mission should I give you guys," Sarutobi said thoughtfully.

"Give us a C-rank mission, please," Naruto begged.

"Naruto, surely after stopping for a month, you should get yourself settled in with some D-rank missions first," Iruka suggested.

"No, team 7 has enough experience, I'm sure they can handle a C-rank mission at this point," Sarutobi said as he glanced down the scroll of missions. "I have a perfect one for you guys," Sarutobi continued. "A mission to guard a bridge builder from Nami no Kuni, you will be protecting him from possible bandits on the road until his arrival at wave," Sarutobi explained. "Is that alright, Kakashi?" Sarutobi asked.

"Yes, that will be fine, Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied.

"Very well, meet your client, Tazuna-san," Sarutobi said as the group turned around to the door way.

An old man with a bottle of sake walked in. He took a sip of his bottle before saying, "You're sending a bunch of brats to protect me? Why is there a civilian in the team, this is super unprofessional."

Naruto tilted his head in confusion before his eyes widen in shock when he realized Tazuna was talking about him and Yuki. "Take that back or I'll kick your ass!" Naruto said angrily as he prepared to attack Tazuna.

Kakashi and Yuki held him back. "Naruto, we're supposed to protect the client, not try and kill him," Kakashi said calmly. "Tazuna-san, everything will be fine, I, an elite jounin will be accompanying you. Not to mention, it won't do if you underestimate my team, they are all excellent shinobi," Kakashi added with a grin underneath his mask.

"Hmph, fine," Tazuna said with a frown.

Clapping his hands together Kakashi turned to his team, "We will meet at the north gates in half an hour, gather your equipments and meet up there," Kakashi commanded.

Team 7 nodded and made their way out the mission room. At their apartment, Naruto and Yuki began packing their clothes and daily necessities into their respective bags. After packing their clothes Naruto dragged Yuki into the kitchen to pack some instant ramen into his own bag. "Is that everything?" Naruto asked Yuki after he was done.

"I think so, we don't actually have much besides clothes, necessities and… instant ramen," Yuki replied.

"Okay, let's go! This is the first time I'll be leaving the Hi no Kuni," Naruto said excitedly.

"It's not really as exciting as you might think it is, this is from first hand experience," Yuki replied.

Sighing and shaking his head Naruto spoke up in a pitying tone, "You just can't understand a man's romance of new adventures in foreign lands."

A vein throbbed on Yuki's forehead as she retorted angrily, "You'll be leaving the second Tazuna sets foot safely in Nami no Kuni, what kind of adventure will you experience?"

Naruto pouted, "A man can dream."

"You're thirteen, just a little boy, and you're also an idiot," Yuki replied without missing a beat.

It was safe to say, Naruto ignored Yuki for the rest of the walk to the gate. Yuki had a sweat drop on her head as the two landed. Naruto was turned away from her with a pout on his face. "Ah, Kakashi-sensei, you're on time!" Naruto yelled in complete and utter surprise.

Kakashi looked up from his orange book of smut and began, "Okay, now that everyone is here, team 7 is moving out now," Kakashi spoke before turning back to his book.

Naruto excitedly dragged Yuki ahead of the group and took the first step out, "Let's go!" Naruto yelled before pausing, "How do we get there?"

Yuki had her palm against her face and she appeared to have a dark cloud above her as she stood there.

_Typical Naruto_. Kakashi thought to himself. _If it wasn't as amusing as it is, I might actually feel a little pity for Yuki_.

_Did I actually think that Naruto grew up? To think I was looking at him in a whole new light yesterday too_. Sakura thought to herself with a small sigh.

_Can I trust my life to a group as weird as this, they hardly seem reliable_. Tazuna thought as he stayed behind the group.

It was three hours after that and the group had already made a fair distance away from the gates of Konoha where they started. By now Naruto's excitement have dropped. As no bandits have appeared, nor were there anything to do. He was still ignoring Yuki with a pout. Yuki didn't seem to want to start a conversation with him as she appeared to be deep in thought. Kakashi was standing at the back of the group reading his smut with an occasional perverse giggle which caused Sakura's vein to throb again and again. Sakura was walking silently behind Naruto and Yuki. After two hours of pestering Sasuke and receiving not much of an answer caused her to give up and remain silent. Tazuna walked in front of Kakashi, his eyes darting left and right, alert, as if he knew of approaching danger. Sasuke walked silently, a brooding face deep in thought, as he occasionally stared at Yuki.

The group continued walking down the dirt path as they silently passed a puddle of water, which Yuki, Sasuke and Kakashi gave a brief glance before passing. The silence between Naruto and Yuki was broken when Yuki gave Naruto's hand three squeezes. They had tried to create a form on quick communication, one squeeze meant they would engage in Taijutsu, two squeezes meant Ninjutsu, three squeezes naturally meant Genjutsu. Since the two of them knew no Genjutsu, Naruto was quick to realize there were enemies using Genjutsu close by. Naruto and Yuki's eyes met, a brief flicker of her eyes telling Naruto that the enemies were behind them. From that Naruto realized the puddle they passed was out of place and was the enemy in disguise. The two continued walking as if nothing had happened, but now more alert and prepared for an attack.

The enemy or enemies wasted no time. Kakashi was taken out right off the bat. Iron chains wrapped around his body and within seconds his body was torn to pieces. Two enemies leapt out from the shadow, they were fast as they rushed towards Tazuna. Sakura hurriedly stood before him protectively. The two enemy shinobi rushed towards Tazuna and Sakura but before they reached them they were kicked back by Sasuke, Naruto and Yuki. The three genin wasted no time engaging the two shinobi in combat, Naruto and Yuki to one while Sasuke engaged the other.

One thought was running through the enemy as he engaged Naruto and Yuki. _How are they fighting so well while holding hands? What is this?_ He thought parrying and evading to the best of his abilities against the unknown fighting style before him. It didn't take long for him to lose the exchange, as he was sent flying backwards by a fist in the face and a kick to the stomach. The mist-nin rolled backwards twice on the floor before pushing himself up. Before he could regain his balance or stance Naruto and Yuki were already on him again, two chakra reinforced fists in the stomach sent the man crumbling onto the floor unconscious, his face agonized in pain.

Naruto and Yuki turned towards Sasuke's battle and were prepared to help him, but Kakashi reappeared and knocked out the chunin with a quick chop to the back of his neck. Sasuke took a look towards Naruto and Yuki, only to see their opponent knocked out behind the two as he frowned. Kakashi spoke first, "Tazuna-san, you have some explaining to do," Kakashi said turning to Tazuna. "The details of our mission were only to protect you from bandits on the road, if there are shinobi after your life, this is hardly qualified as a C-rank mission," Kakashi continued with a hardened gaze.

Tazuna looked down on the ground before explaining, "O-our country, Nami no Kuni is a poor country. The towns are desolated, homeless people, thieves and little orphans litter the streets. I am a bridge builder currently building a bridge connecting Nami no Kuni to the outside world. Upon the completion of this bridge, trades will open up. It will surely bring prosperity to Nami no Kuni." Tazuna began before his a look of disgust appeared on his face. "But, a powerful businessman by the name of Gatou, he seeks to rule and monopolize all the trades in Nami no Kuni, he does not want the bridge to be completed," Tazuna continued before Naruto interrupted.

"So in order to stop you from completing the bridge he has sent shinobi to take your life," Naruto finished off, an angry look on his face.

"A mission that requires us to engage in combat against enemy shinobi, that is at least a B-rank mission, perhaps even A-rank," Kakashi said looking at Tazuna.

"I've been to Nami no Kuni when I was smaller, it is as Tazuna-san describes. It is a vastly undeveloped country, to afford a B-rank mission, or an A-rank mission, they most likely could not obtain the money to request such a mission," Yuki spoke up.

"Y-yeah, if the bridge is completed and trades starts, we'll get the money, we will pay double the price of an A-rank mission," Tazuna said desperately.

"The money is not the issue here, to fight a powerful businessman like Gatou and his samurais, not to mention missing-nin, it is far too dangerous for a genin team," Kakashi replied. "I'm sorry," Kakashi said as Tazuna stared at the floor.

"Kakashi-sensei, have you forgotten your own words?" Naruto yelled angrily causing all heads to turn to him.

"B-brat," Tazuna said surprised.

"Naruto," Sakura whispered.

Naruto pointed a finger at Kakashi before continuing, "Your very own words were, 'It won't do if you underestimate my team. They are all excellent shinobi'. How can we possibly let Tazuna-jii go on alone if putting our lives on the line will help him complete this bridge to save a whole country from oppression? Isn't this what we trained and work our ass off for? There may be those that call shinobi tools, but I will never believe in that philosophy. I live by my own way of life. Running with my tail between my legs at the first sight of danger is the last thing I'll ever do!" Naruto finished with a huff, panting for air after his speech.

"I agree, what was the reason we trained so hard for, if, at the first sight of danger we run? There may only be a slim chance of success, but we would be saving a whole country. I believe that together, we can do it," Yuki said.

"Yuki," Naruto said with a smile as Yuki smiled back softly.

Sighing, Kakashi's shoulder slumped, "You two win, but I can't just go and put our whole team into danger, Sasuke, Sakura, what are your thoughts?" Kakashi asked. "If even one of you decides it's too dangerous, we'll be going back right this instant, and don't be afraid to speak your mind, you are only genin, you don't have to play hero," Kakashi spoke seriously as he stared between Sasuke and Sakura.

"I'm going," Sasuke replied simply. _This is a way for me to measure the scope of my strength and to grow stronger, I must get stronger_. Sasuke thought.

_Th-there's no way I can do it, I'm too weak. I'm not like Sasuke-kun, Naruto, Yuki, or Kakashi-sensei. I can't possibly fight against other shinobi. I'll die_. Sakura thought as she bit her lips nervously. _Bu-but, if I say it, Sasuke-kun, Naruto and Yuki, they'll_…. Sakura thought.

'_**I'm the weakest one in the team. I need to get stronger too. I can't become a burden in the team**_**.' **

_I said that. I had the resolve to get stronger. This is the first step to becoming stronger, I am also a shinobi, I will not be a burden, and I won't hide in Sasuke-kun, Naruto, Yuki and Kakashi-sensei's shadow forever_! Sakura thought with renew resolve. "I'm going too," Sakura said with newfound strength.

_Interesting, to think Sakura has grown this much, they really are growing up into fine shinobi_. Kakashi thought as he stared at Sakura before turning to Tazuna. "Tazuna-san, team 7 is at your service, we will remain with you until the completion of the bridge," Kakashi said as Tazuna sighed with relief.

"Th-thank you, thank you all of you," Tazuna said gratefully.

"First off though, I should tie these two up before they run amok again," Kakashi said as he tied up the two knocked out chunin. Kakashi had the two missing-nin tied up against a tree as he wrote a quick letter, tied it to a messenger hawk and sent it. "I sent a message for Konoha to send Hunter-nin to take these two. I also described the change in the mission to Hokage-sama, we might be receiving back up, until than we should be on our way, we have to make it to Nami no Kuni before night fall," Kakashi said explaining the situation.

"Right!" The rest of the group replied.

It was four hours since than and the group was nearing Tazuna's house in Nami no Kuni. They were currently on a boat to stealthily entering the town. They were passing under the large bridge that was under construction. "Yuki, hang in there," Naruto said comfortingly as he patted Yuki's back.

Yuki was hunched over the side of the boat slightly green in the face. Apparently she had a weak case of motion sickness, and being on a rocking boat was enough to cause her to be sick. "Hey, keep quiet over there, we're sneaking in right now, are you trying to alert the world that we're here?" The boatmen hissed out angrily as Naruto gave him an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry," Yuki said weakly to the boatmen.

"Don't talk, we're almost to land," Naruto whispered softly.

The boat arrived onto the opposite shore after several minutes. Naruto helped support Yuki off the small boat, as she was feeling too weak from the ride. Bidding the boatman good bye, team 7 and Tazuna continued their way to Tazuna's house. In a short while, Yuki regained her strength as she was able to walk without Naruto's support anymore.

"We are nearing my home now," Tazuna explained as the group made their way through the mist.

Suddenly Naruto turned and whipped a kunai towards the bush. The action almost caused Sakura to scream in fright. "Wh-what are you doing, Naruto!?" Sakura asked angrily.

"I thought I sensed something there," Naruto replied as he and Yuki walked over to the bushes and found a frightened white rabbit, the kunai missing it by mere inches.

"It's just a cute little rabbit, stop trying to act cool, Naruto?" Sakura reprimand as Naruto scratched his head with an awkward laugh.

"Hehehe, my mistake," Naruto said.

Kakashi stayed quiet during the exchange as he realized something important. _A snow white rabbit in a season without snow_? Kakashi questioned himself before he sensed danger approaching from the edge of his senses. "Everyone, duck!" Kakashi yelled urgently.

The genin, unsure of what was going on listened to Kakashi as they all went down onto their stomach. Kakashi grabbed Tazuna and pushed him down with him. Over their head a humongous blade sailed by as it slammed into the tree in front of them, embedding half way into the tree trunk. A man suddenly appeared standing on the blade, as he stared down at the group.

"Zabuza of the mist," Kakashi said in the most serious tone team 7 had ever heard him. He had one hand gripping onto his forehead protector. His pose was tense, prepared for anything to happen. "You guys stay back, this fight will be on a whole new level. You must listen to my everyword, understood?" Kakashi said grimly as he turned towards his team.

"Y-yes sir!" the four genin replied as they moved into position to protect Tazuna.

"I guess I don't have a choice, I'll have to use this," Kakashi stated as he lifted his forehead protector.

"Ahh, the famous copy-nin, Sharingan Kakashi, no wonder the demon bros failed," Zabuza said calmly. "But, how about you just hand the old man over," Zabuza suggested.

_Sharingan_?! _But how_? Sasuke thought as he stared at Kakashi's back.

"Hell no," Naruto yelled out angrily.

"You heard my student," Kakashi added with a small smile behind his mask.

"It won't make any difference either way, the old man will die," Zabuza said calmly. "But to think I'll be facing the famous Sharingan this early in the battle, what an honour," Zabuza finished as he pushed against the tree and pulled his sword free. Landing gracefully on the lake a distance away from the group, Zabuza strapped his sword onto his back.

Kakashi slid into a battle stance as the two jounin locked eyes. Zabuza lets out a bloodthirsty smirk as he got into a strange pose. "**Kirigakure no jutsu**," Zabuza says calmly as the mist slowly thickens around team 7 and Tazuna as Zabuza vanished before their eyes. "Let the battle begin," Zabuza's voice whispered through the mist, sending a shiver through the four genin.

"Where'd he go?" Sakura said, fear evident in her voice.

The other genin tensed up as well, unsure where their enemy will come from. "He'll come after me first. Zabuza, as a mist-nin, he was best known as an expert in the arts of silent killing. You don't notice until you're dead, that's why, you guys must be careful," Kakashi explained, his eyes flickering left and right, trying to catch a glimpse of where Zabuza might be.

"Eight choices-," Zabuza suddenly spoke up from within the mist, his voice seemed to echo all around the group as they turned left and right trying to find him. "-Liver, lungs, spine, clavial vein, neck vein, brain, kidneys and heart, which one should I got for first?" Zabuza asked in a sinister voice, sending a wave of fear through the four genin and Tazuna.

_S-s-so this is the presence of an elite jounin, what incredible ki_. Yuki thought as she shivered uncontrollably. _I-it feels as if I'll be killed if I make even a single move, can we really do th-_. Yuki thought as she bit her lips, almost drawing blood, as she tried to control her fear, but, to no prevail.

Naruto could feel Yuki's hands shaking uncontrollably, and he could see her fear stricken face from the corner of his eyes. He wasn't faring much better himself. He was starting to have difficulty breathing from the immense killing intent in the air. _I got everyone into this. There is no way I'm losing to something as stupid as killing intent_! Naruto declared to himself as he mustered all his courage and resolve. Naruto gripped onto Yuki's hands tightly, but also in a comforting way. "Yuki-," Naruto whispered with a reassuring tone as Yuki turned towards him, both meeting each other's eyes. "-Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you," Naruto reassured as he gave Yuki his trademark foxy smile.

Yuki lets out the breath of air that she was holding in as her body visibly became less tense, as the fear began to subside. "Right," Yuki replied with a nod and a small smile.

"Nicely said, Naruto, don't worry, I'll protect you guys even if it kills me-," Kakashi reassured the group as he held his hand in a ram seal, "-I don't let my comrades die," Kakashi finished as he released a wave of chakra that washed over the group, erasing the killing intent they felt. Kakashi looked back at the group with a small smile.

"We'll see about that," Zabuza's voice interrupted sharply as he appeared within the defensive formation the genin had set up around Tazuna. Zabuza had his hand on the hilt of his blade, ready to cleave the group in half. "It's over-," Zabuza said.

Kakashi reacted in an instant as he stabbed Zabuza with a kunai before he could react. Water dripped from Zabuza's wound as Sakura yelled out, "Kakashi-sensei, behind you!" The Zabuza clone Kakashi attacked burst into water as a second Zabuza appeared from behind Kakashi. With a swing of his blade, Zabuza cleaved Kakashi in half.

"Sensei!" The four genin yelled worriedly.

The two parts of Kakashi too burst into water as Zabuza's eyes widened in disbelief. _No way_! _He copied me in the mist_? He thought in realization.

"Don't move," Kakashi's calm voice said from behind Zabuza, he held a kunai by Zabuza's neck. "It's over," Kakashi continued calmly.

_Incredible, Kakashi-sensei was actually that good_? Yuki thought in awe.

"Haha, he did it," Sakura said happily.

"Hehe," Zabuza chuckled causing team 7 to tense up. "It's over? You just don't get it Kakashi, there is no way you can beat me with such monkey-like imitations," Zabuza said calmly. "Although your skills impressed me, to think you had already copied my technique, saying those words were actually a trap to make me believe that was the real you, when in reality, the real you hid in the mist, waiting," Zabuza continued. "Nice plan, but, I'm not that ill prepared," A third Zabuza said from behind Kakashi.

"A fake?!" Sasuke said in shock when the clone Kakashi had cornered burst into water.

With many years of honed reflex, Kakashi managed to duck before Zabuza could cleave him into two. With perfect and skilful handling of his sword, Zabuza turned and kicked Kakashi in the rigcage, the force of the kick sending him flying towards the lake. "Sensei!"

Kakashi surfaced from under water with one thought in his mind. _Strange, this water is oddly heavy_. Kakashi thought.

"Fool," Zabuza said as he finished the last of his seal. "**Suiton, Suiro no jutsu**," Zabuza said calmly as an orb of water flew out of the lake with Kakashi trapped inside. "Sharingan Kakashi, to think you are called a genius. I admit you had the right idea to escape to the water, but now you're trapped in my inescapable prison. With my clone trapping you, killing the old man will take no effort at all," Zabuza said cruelly as he began walking over towards the group of genin and Tazuna. "Heh, wearing forehead protectors and acting like real ninjas… do you truly know what a real ninja is? A ninja is someone who has survived numerous brushes of death. Basically, once you're good enough to be listed in my handbook, then you can start calling yourself real ninjas. Until then, you guys are not ninjas," Zabuza continued as he slowly walked towards the genin.

"You guys! Take Tazuna and run, there is no way you can possible beat him!" Kakashi yelled from within the water prison.

"That option was gone from the very start, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said calmly as he and Yuki stood in front of Sasuke, Sakura and Tazuna.

"Without you, there is no way of beating him, even if we run away, he'll simply catch up," Yuki continued.

"In otherwords, the only chance we have at victory is freeing you!" Naruto and Yuki finished in unison.

"Naruto, Yuki, it's too dangerous," Kakashi yelled.

"That's what being a ninja is, Kakashi-sensei, I'm not naïve to believe that being a ninja is a child's game. Not to mention, there is no way in hell the future Hokage of Konoha will fall here," Naruto finished confidently.

"Excellent speech, boy, but, aren't you the hypocrite, aren't you treating this as a child's game? Holding your little girlfriend's hand when you're about to fight?" Zabuza mocked.

Naruto and Yuki ignored his taunt as they got into their starting stance. "Yuki, I have an idea of freeing Kakashi-sensei," Naruto whispered.

"It won't work, the explosion is too strong, it'll hurt Kakashi-sensei too," Yuki replied, she already had an idea what Naruto was going to suggest. After all, that very idea was the first thing to come to mind in a situation like this.

"Ceh, there goes the idea of rushing the water clone with **Kage Bunshin Bakuretsu**," Naruto said with a small grin.

_Those two, they can't drag the battle out too long, if they can capitalize on the surprise of anyone seeing their rare fighting style for the first time, they might be able to do it. If Zabuza underestimate them enough, this might work._ Kakashi thought as he stared at the imminent showdown between Zabuza, Naruto and Yuki.

"But hey, you know-," Naruto whispered softly to Yuki. "-He probably deserves a little pain too for getting himself caught in this mess in the first place."

"No, besides, two Bakuretsu in a row is our limit, the backlash of the clone's failed synchronization creates too much stress mentally," Yuki retorted.

Naruto sweat drops as he remembered the first time they tried it. It ended up knocking them unconscious and gave them the worst headache the two had ever felt, it was even worse than the backlash of using **Yuukai**.

"Yuki, we really need to start learning some moves without such crappy after effects," Naruto dead panned before the two of them caught a glimpse of Zabuza moving from the corner of their eyes.

The two broke out of their conversation as they leapt to the side to avoid Zabuza's downward slash. "Hey, did you happen to forget I was standing right there?" Zabuza asked sounding slightly annoyed as his eyes followed the two genin's movement. _Strange, their movement is perfectly coordinated_. Zabuza thought as he watched as the two genin leapt towards him. Without another thought, Zabuza charged towards the two genin, to meet them head on.

_He is skilled at using that gigantic sword of his, but we can seal its usage by infighting. If we stick to him without stop, we might be able to obtain the flow of the battle_. Naruto thought as he and Yuki continued to attack with Double Arts.

_Th-this is! I see, they weren't just holding hands for the hell of it, this is their fighting style! I hate to admit it, but it's pretty damn impressive. This if the first time I've seen such a thing, before this, I would never have thought it was possible. But the potential in this style is astonishing, to think two genin like them is keeping up with me who outclasses them in pure spec. Having superior speed and strength isn't enough, their dance like movement and coordination attacks would defeat anyone ill prepared_. Zabuza thought as he continued to evade and parry attacks from Naruto and Yuki. _They're not stupid either, fighting me like this, it's to seal my Kubikiri Honchou_. _But, I can see it, despite how random it may seem, there is a pattern to your movement, perhaps this style is still in the making, they probably haven't refined it themselves_. Zabuza thought with a smirk underneath his bandages as he leapt back to distance himself away from Naruto and Yuki.

Naruto and Yuki did not miss a beat as they followed after Zabuza. "Don't do it, it's a trap!" Kakashi yelled from within his water sphere as he watched the two genin chase after Zabuza.

"Too late, Hatake," Zabuza said as he unsheathed Kubikiri Honchou from his back as he cleaved downwards towards the pair. "Your punches and kicks may be random and you may have the ability to constantly changing the flow of your attack, but your movements are always the same, you always move in a straight line. Your hands are your greatest weakness!" Zabuza yelled out as he prepared to cleave their arms apart.

"Wrong!" The two yelled and without stopping, Naruto spun on his feet and lifted Yuki off the ground, the movement caused the blade to miss by mere inches as it slammed into the floor, cracking the earth on impact.

"We knew our opponents would target our hands, in that case it only makes it easier to predict where our opponents will be aiming," Yuki said as Naruto spun her around.

"It is our greatest advantage!" Naruto and Yuki yelled in unison as Yuki kicked Zabuza on the side of his head with a chakra enchanted kick. The resulting impact sent Zabuza flying off towards a tree as Yuki landed on the ground with a gentle tap.

Without missing a beat Yuki and Naruto rushed towards the prison the clone held Kakashi in. _They did it! That was a perfect counter. Zabuza didn't see the kick coming. He should have taken the full blow of that kick, they wo-_. Kakashi thought before he saw movement from the edge of his vision.

Yuki and Naruto were already on the water running towards the clone, when, from the forest Zabuza shot out at an incredible speed towards the pair. They barely manage to dodge out of the way as Zabuza cleaved his sword down to where they stood just a second ago. The impact caused a splash of water to block the view of Zabuza from the two genin. "That was one hell of a kick, if I didn't twist my head and lower the impact at the last second, I would have been a goner," Zabuza said from behind Yuki and Naruto as the two looked behind them in shock at how fast Zabuza moved. "This time, it's game over!" Zabuza yelled as he attacked with the intent of cleaving the pair of genin into two.

"**Yuukai**!" Yuki yelled as a burst of white light covered Yuki and Naruto. The pair instantly took their distance panting and wide eyed at how close they were from being cleaved into two.

Zabuza whistled, "You still got a trump card up your sleeves? Pretty damn freaking impressive," Zabuza said as he charged towards the two.

"_We're so screwed, 3 seconds, 4,_" Naruto said to Yuki through their telepathic connection, counting the seconds they have left.

"_Not yet, keep up with me, Naruto_!" Yuki encouraged through their connection.

"_5 seconds_!" Naruto said and he could feel the effects of Yuukai leaving his body, he stumbled slightly as he became disorientated.

"**Yuukai**!" Yuki yelled again, her face was twisted in concentration. The white aura of Yuukai flared up again, as Yuki and Naruto created some distance away from Zabuza again. Yuki and Naruto were panting now, the severe taxation of using two Yuukai in a row straining both their body and mind.

"_We can't keep this up, Yuki, we have to free Kakashi-sensei_," Naruto said.

"_Ye-yeah_," Yuki replied as the two suddenly stopped with Zabuza hot on their tail.

Yuki spun Naruto around at Zabuza who was caught off guard by a round house kick to his left. Lifting his arm up to block it, the force of the impact was still enough to send Zabuza skidding across the surface of the water. The two genin stumbled around as the white aura began to disappear again. _Last one_! Yuki thought as she gritted her teeth. _**Yuukai**_!

Without wasting a single second the two genin turned away from Zabuza as they rushed towards the clone trapping Kakashi. The water clone tried to defend itself, but being only 1/10 the strength of the original it was annihilated instantly by two powered up genin, bursting into water as the white aura vanished from around the two genin. Yuki and Naruto didn't even remain standing for a second, as they collapsed onto the surface of the water unconscious, the water walking training giving them the innate ability to float on water by instinct. "Good job you two, I'll handle the rest from here, it must have been taxing using three Yuukai in a row like that," Kakashi said as he and Zabuza stared eye to eye.

"Those two, what are their names?" Zabuza asked a small tone of respect in his voice.

"The young boy is Uzumaki Naruto and his partner Hikari Yuki, they are the creators of Double Arts, the fighting style you have just witnessed," Kakashi replied with a small smile as he glanced proudly towards Naruto and Yuki. Forming a shadow clone, Kakashi sent it to carry the pair to safety.

"I see, I will remember their names, the two I'll be sending along the grave with the rest of you!" Zabuza yelled as he began forming hand seals.

Zabuza's eyes widened in surprise when Kakashi began forming the exact same seals and at the same time. "**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu**!" Kakashi and Zabuza yelled in unison as two gigantic water dragon arose from the water and began clashing.

Sasuke watched the intense battle from the sideline, his hands clutched into fists as he gritted his teeth. _I, a Uchiha and number one rookie could do nothing but watch from the sidelines, while a dead last was able to fight evenly with a jounin and free our sensei when I couldn't do so myself._ Sasuke thought angrily. He turned his eyes away from the incredible battle before him towards where Kakashi's clone held Yuki and Naruto. _I need her. I want her powers. That white light aura, if she were to use it with me than our powers would be immeasurable. If a dead last can become that strong, just think how strong I will become_. Sasuke thought as he stared at Yuki. _I will make you mine, Hikari Yuki_.

Underneath the water of the two water dragons, Kakashi and Zabuza clashed, sword to kunai. _What is going on_? Zabuza thought as the two jounin leapt apart. Zabuza prepared to use his **Kiragakure no Jutsu** but he was caught off guard when Kakashi also assumed the same pose. _He… my movements, he's completely-_. Zabuza thought and was surprised when Kakashi spoke.

"Reading them?" Kakashi finished.

_D-did he read my mind? D-damn that_-. Zabuza thought surprised as he stared at the sharingan.

"Freaking eye is pissing me off! Right?" Kakashi continued.

"All you're doing is copying me-," Zabuza began.

"-You can't beat me you bastard!" Zabuza and Kakashi finished in unison.

"Damn you! I'll make it so you can never open that damned mouth again!" Zabuza yelled angrily as he began to form seals. _Th-that is?! Me? But that's impossible! Is this one of his gen-jutsu?_ Zabuza thought as he saw an image of himself standing behind Kakashi.

"**Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu**," Kakashi yelled finishing his jutsu before Zabuza.

_Impossible! I'm the one doing the jutsu but I can't keep up_! Zabuza thought as a humongous wave of water crashed into him sending him crashing towards the shore and into the forest.

"Guah," The rest of team seven minus Naruto and Yuki, plus Tazuna said when the water crashed into them. Kakashi's clone had jumped into the trees with Naruto and Yuki to avoid taking damage.

Zabuza was washed away by the water until he crashed heavily into a tree. "Gu," Zabuza said in pain.

"It's over," Kakashi said calmly on the branch above him.

"Yo-you, can you see the future?" Zabuza asked as he turned towards Kakashi.

"Yeah, you're going to die here," Kakashi replied as he pulled out a kunai.

From out of no where two senbon needles pierced Zabuza's neck, sending him crumbling onto the floor. The sudden attack caused team seven minus the duo and Tazuna to look at the source of the attack in alert. "Hehe, you're right, he is dead," a strange person with a white mask said, the mysterious person was standing on a branch.

Kakashi remained silent as he went down to check Zabuza's pulse. _He really is dead_. Kakashi thought as he found no pulse.

"Thank you very much. I've been looking for a chance to kill Zabuza for a long time now," The masked stranger said bowing.

"That mask, you're a mist hunter-nin," Kakashi said.

"Correct," The stranger replied.

"Hunter-nin?" Sakura asked confused.

"Yes, my duty it to hunt down shinobi that have abandoned their village, I am part of the mist hunter-nin team," The stranger explained.

_From his height and voice, he is not much older than my team, yet to already be a hunter-nin, he's not a normal kid_. Kakashi thought as he stared at the masked stranger warily.

A whirl of wind surrounded the hunter-nin as he appeared beside Zabuza's body to pick it up. "Your battle is over now, I must dispose of the body since it seems to hold many secrets," The stranger said. "Farewell."

"H-he's gone," Sakura and Tazuna said when the stranger and Zabuza disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Haa, now let's get Tazuna-san back to his home," Kakashi said tiredly. He had his clone join the group again with Naruto and Yuki. Suddenly the clone disappeared as Naruto and Yuki dropped onto the floor with a thud, Kakashi too collapsed onto his knees. "Haa, make sure you guys bind Naruto and Yuki's hands together," Kakashi managed to squeeze out before he collapsed face down onto the floor.

"Kakashi-sensei, what's wrong?" Sakura asked worriedly.

_My body won't move, I used the sharingan too muc-…_ Kakashi's last thoughts were as such before he fell unconscious.

-

_Preview for chapter 6: The unexpected meeting! Training for the big day, will we succeed?_

A/N: Lots more fighting in the first arc of the story. The Sasuke thing will be a major sub-plot to the story, expect it to go on for quite some time before it resolves properly. When Naruto and Yuki fight with Double Arts, I tend to skip some details merely because it's simply tedious to write how they actually fight. The way they fight is merely a continuously changing flow of punches and kicks. The reason why it is so hard to fight them is because they have the ability to punch and kick from both sides at once, if you imagine just how hard it is to block that while fighting, it would be quite easy to understand how even elite jounin can have problems handling them. There should be two more chapters before the arc concludes. Also, Naruto and Yuki's move set will remain having major after effects until their next training during the chunin exam when they meet you know who. Next chapter introduces a canon character with my own twist. If you are actually reading this block of text, hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	6. No shortcuts to becoming Hokage

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

**Double Arts**

Chapter 6: No shortcuts to becoming Hokage

An older woman watched the group of three unconscious people before her. Kakashi was the first to wake up as he slowly blinked his one eye open. "Sensei, are you alright?" She asked. She was Tsunami, Tazuna's daughter.

"Yeah, I just can't move for a week or so," Kakashi replied.

"The sharingan is incredible and all, but, if it puts that much strain on your body, I guess you should think twice before using it," Sakura said, she was sitting by Kakashi. Taking a look at Naruto and Yuki, "Same with Naruto and Yuki, Yuukai is indeed a great move, but such an after effect, what a double-edged move," Sakura said as she stared at the pair worriedly.

"They haven't regained consciousness?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah, they've just been sleeping in a comatose state ever since freeing you, but their physical condition is perfect, but, I don't know when they'll wake up," Sakura replied worriedly.

"After a day or two of rest, they should be fine, the strain of using Yuukai three times in a row much have been too taxing on their mind," Kakashi assured.

"Well, we defeated that super strong ninja, we should be fine for a while," Tazuna encouraged happily.

"But who exactly was that strange masked guy?" Sakura asked.

"That mask belongs to one of the mist hunter-nin team. They are known as body erasers that disposed of the body without a trace. After all, a ninja's body has the secrets of the village's nin-jutsu, chakra type and much other information in it. For example, if I were to be killed, the secrets of the sharingan could be revealed. If you don't be careful there could be the danger of the enemies learning your jutsu," Kakashi explained. "A ninja's body can reveal secret information. A hunter-nin job is to dispose of missing-nin and protect the secrets of the village from getting out. They are specialists who guard their village's secrets. No sound, no smell. That is a ninja's end."

"S-so that Zabuza was chopped up into pieces?" Sakura asked when the mental image caused her to shiver. "Scary."

-

Far away from Tazuna's house, the strange masked-nin had Zabuza lying on the floor. There were bundles of medical supplies around the pair. The masked-nin was cutting apart Zabuza's face bandage when suddenly Zabuza's hand moved and grabbed the masked-nin's arm. "That's alright, I'll do it myself!" Zabuza said with a sinister grin.

"Oh, you've already come back to life?" The masked-nin said.

"Damn you sure are rough," Zabuza said as he pulled out the senbon that was piercing into his neck himself.

"Oh! You shouldn't pull them out like that, you'll really die pulling them like that," The masked-nin said worriedly.

"As if that old man would die from something like that, though I never thought I would see you in such a state," A calm smooth voice said to the pair.

The pair turned to the source of the voice. "You little brat, you're finally awake now eh? I wouldn't have to go through this crap if you had come with us in the first place," Zabuza said.

The young man standing in the shadows of the tree walked out, he had pale white hair and two red dots donning in the middle of his forehead. "Haku, how long are you going to wear that stupid mask?" The young man asked.

"It reminds me of the old days, plus it was useful for this act, Kimimaro-nii" Haku replied as she took off her mask, revealing a beautiful young face.

"So how long will it take for the old man to recover?" Kimimaro asked.

"I assume a week would be enough," Haku replied.

"Good, next time I'll defeat the sharingan and those two brats, I'll rip their Double Arts apart," Zabuza said.

"Double Arts? What happened out there, Haku?" Kimimaro asked.

"I'll tell you all about it when we get Zabuza-san back to base, Kimimaro-nii," Haku replied.

-

Naruto and Yuki awoke in a dark and damp sewer. Snapping her eyes open Yuki sat up in an instant, a look her disgust on her face. "Where are we? Why are we in a sewer?" Yuki asked as she began shaking Naruto around. "Wake up, Naruto!"

Naruto was flung everywhere before he managed to say, "I'm awake, I'm awake!" The two stood up, as Yuki stared down at herself with a large frown on her face. Her clothes were wet from the sewage water. Naruto stared at Yuki with amused eyes as he said, "Phew, you stink, Yuki," while holding his nose closed.

Naruto received a Yuki Heel Drop faster than he could react as he yelped in pain. Grabbing onto his foot while wincing, Naruto limp after Yuki who was walking away with a huff. "I was joking, you didn't have to hit me so hard," Naruto whined.

"So, do you have any idea where we are, Naruto?" Yuki asked seemingly to forget what had just happened.

"I don't know how to say this, but, I feel as if I know my way around this place," Naruto replied as he overtook Yuki and began leading the way.

Walking through the many passage and turning corners the two arrived in a large room, a humongous room with a huge gate with a single piece of paper with the kanji 'Seal' sticking on it. "Wh-what is this?" Yuki asked surprised as the two walked up to the cage.

The two almost leapt back when two crimson red eyes with slit opened from behind the gate. A row of razor sharp teeth formed a smile as the eyes rolled down towards the two. Two large fluffy ears could be seen within the darkness. "A rabbit?" Naruto said confused.

"I-I think that's the Kyuubi, Naruto," Yuki said with a sweat drop when she saw the eyes glaring at Naruto.

"Correct, I see at least one of you has a brain around here," Kyuubi replied calmly. "But looking at this trash of a place you call his mind, anyone would understand why he is such an idiot," Kyuubi mocked as Naruto glared at him.

"He-hey! I'm no idiot, you damn demon rabbit," Naruto retorted weakly.

The Kyuubi ignored Naruto as his piercing red eyes turned to Yuki, a sinister smirk on his face. "Wh-what?" Yuki asked weakly as she took a step away from the gate.

"You are part of the Ketsuki clan, are you not?" Kyuubi asked.

"Ye-yeah, so what?" Yuki replied.

"You know, I have the power to get rid of your curse, if you simply fulfill one simple condition of mine," Kyuubi said, the offer caught both Yuki and Naruto's attention.

"We're not going to free you, Kyuubi!" Naruto yelled out.

"I know you wouldn't, that is why I want to enjoy a show, I want to torment you, I want to make your life hell, foolish little brat," Kyuubi replied cruelly. "My condition is simple, I will get rid of that pathetic curse that threatens your life and the only payment I wish to receive is your memories, your memories of the time you've spent with Naruto, simply said, I wish for you to forget the one name Uzumaki Naruto ever existed," Kyuubi finished as a large sinister smirk appeared on his face.

"Wh-what?" Yuki and Naruto said surprised at the condition.

Yuki bit her lips nervously as she contemplated over the condition. _I-if I accept it, than Naruto won't have me around anymore. I'll be out of his life. I won't be around stopping his possible relationship with Hinata-chan or even Sakura. Not to mention, it is impossible to become Hokage if he has to drag me around all the time. I'll only drag him down in the future. Naruto's true potential exceeds mines. Ye-yeah, I am only getting in his way, I can't do anything properly. Yuukai and my lack of chakra to do Kage Bunshin, I am doing nothing but holding him back. I want Naruto to become Hokage, I know he can. Perhaps this was fated to be, if it means he can achieve his dreams, I'll gladly give up my memories, even if I forget him…_ Yuki thought seriously.

Naruto kept quiet as he watched Yuki think over the decision. His heart sank when he saw her determined gaze. He knew that Yuki was planning to accept the condition. "Y-yuki, you aren't seriously thinking of accepting it, right?" Naruto asked softly.

"I… I think it is best that I accept it," Yuki acknowledged as she bowed down her head, her bangs shadowing her eyes.

"Wh-why? Do you wish to be separated from me that bad? I know I may be annoying sometimes, I know I act like an idiot often and say stupid things without thinking, bu-but, did the time we spent together mean nothing?" Naruto yelled.

"It meant nothing to me," was Yuki's soft reply, she was still staring at the floor, unable to look at Naruto. There was a brief look of devastation on Naruto's face before it was replaced with a look of determination.

Kyuubi laughed, his voice booming and echoing across the small chamber of his jail. "How is it boy, the taste of despair, of being abandoned by your partner? You foolish mortals still amuse me greatly," Kyuubi mocked from within his cage.

"Shut up, you bastard-," Naruto yelled at Kyuubi before turning back to Yuki. Grabbing onto Yuki's shoulders with both hands Naruto spoke, "Yuki, look me in the eyes and repeat those words, it meant nothing to you right? Than face me and tell it straight to my face." Yuki remained facing down on the floor. "I-I know you don't mean it, I know you think what you're doing is for my own good, that if we separate, I can continue my dream to become Hokage. Bu-but, I would rather abandon my dreams than abandon you, ho-how can I possibly be the Hokage if I have to accept a deal from a demon. Doing such a thing, that is equivalent to taking a short cut, I won't accept that! I once told a kid, that there are no short cuts in the path to become Hokage, if I do such a thing, wouldn't I be going against my very own words? Be-besides, we made a promise, didn't we? That I will become Hokage with you by my side," Naruto said, trying his best to get through to Yuki. Naruto could feel Yuki shaking, as drops of water fell onto the puddle on the floor below, causing ripples to form.

"Na-naruto," Yuki's quivering voice said softly.

"I'm glad. I knew that you were lying, but, I still feared the possibility that what you said might have been true. If it was true, I don't know what I would have done, I'm really glad," Naruto said softly as he lets out a breath of relief.

Yuki sniffed once before wiping her eyes quickly with her arm. "Hahaha, what was I thinking, if I leave an idiot like you alone, there is no way you'd become Hokage," Yuki said playfully as she looked up at Naruto with the faintest of smile.

Their eyes met as Naruto gave Yuki a fox-like grin. Turning in unison towards Kyuubi, "The deal is off-," they yelled as they pointed at Kyuubi, "-there is no way we'll accept a deal from the likes of you!"

Kyuubi remained silent smirking as he showed off his row razor sharp teethes. "You may have denied my offer this time, but it still stands, child of Ketsuki, I will be waiting for your next arrival," Kyuubi said. "You will beg for my help in the future, that I am sure of…"

-

Those were the last words the pair heard as their world turned white. Opening their eyes together, the pair found themselves staring at a brown wooden ceiling. "Ugh, where are we?" Naruto muttered softly. His body felt sore all over, not to mention his stomach was grumbling in pain.

Naruto turned his head to his side and found Yuki in a similar position. "You two, you're finally awake!" A female voice alerted the both of them as they turned to the source of the voice. It was a beautiful woman, one that neither has ever seen before in their lives. "You two have been sleeping for the past two days, I was so worried," The woman explained. "Oh, I'm Tsunami, I'm Tazuna's daughter, this is our house," Tsunami said when she saw the pair's confused look.

"I see, Kakashi-sensei managed to beat Zabuza than," Naruto said.

"That's good," Yuki said relieved.

"U-um, I'm sorry to be the bringer of bad news, but, Zabuza is still alive, at least that's what your sensei said, he and your teammates are out in the forest training, to prepare for the fight," Tsunami said.

"Ehhh! That idiot sensei, why the heck does he always do this to us," Naruto yelled.

The tensed and serious moment were completely broken by the two loud grumbling of Naruto and Yuki's stomach as they blushed faintly in embarrassment. "Right, you two haven't eaten anything in the past two days, I'll go whip something up for you guys right away," Tsunami said with a giggle as she left the pair alone.

The two remained silent before Yuki spoke up, "Naruto, that wasn't my imagination was it, it really happened, right?"

Naruto remained silent before replying softly, "Yeah, it happened."

Yuki turned her head to face Naruto. "The things I said back there, I'm sorr-," Yuki began before Naruto interrupted.

"It's alright, I don't blame you for anything, you don't have to apologize," Naruto interrupted as he turned to face Yuki a large foxy grin on his face.

Yuki smiled back as she blushed faintly. _I fee-feel as if I could confess now, these feelings I have are real. I-I have to say it_. Yuki thought as she mustered her resolve. "Na-naruto," Yuki began causing Naruto to stare at her confused. Yuki blushed deeply before continuing, "I-i-I, th-that is to you-, u-um, I li-," Yuki stammered out when suddenly the door slammed open.

"We're back! I heard you two were wake," Sakura said happily as she walked in.

"Yo," Kakashi said with a small wave from behind her.

Sasuke was brooding as he walked in after Kakashi. The newly arrived trio arrived and stared at the pair. Naruto had a confused look on his face before it changed to a smile when he saw them. As for Yuki, she had turned as red as a tomato, and the trio swore they saw smoke rising from her head. _Did we interrupt something_? Kakashi and Sakura thought.

"Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan, and bastard!" Naruto greeted.

"How are you feeling, Naruto? You've been unconscious for the past two days," Kakashi asked.

"I'm perfectly fine, just a little hungry," Naruto replied.

"What about you, Yuki-chan?" Sakura asked.

"F-fine, pe-perfectly fine!" Yuki stammered out.

_Strange_. Kakashi and Sakura thought but mentally shrugged.

"Is it true Zabuza is still out there, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, we were tricked at the end of the battle, Zabuza's ally managed to rescue him," Kakashi replied.

"I see. You're training now, right?" Yuki asked.

"Yeah, we're practicing tree walking chakra control exercise," Sakura replied.

"I see, but wait, you guys haven't learnt that yet?" Naruto said staring at the two other genin surprised.

Sakura looked at Naruto in confusion. "You can do it already?"

"E-eh, yeah," Naruto replied.

_Oh right, these two can already walk on water, what to do, what to do for their training_. Kakashi thought as he stared between Naruto and Yuki.

The answer caused Sasuke to clench his fist tightly from his position of brooding against the wall. Sasuke turned on his heel and opened the door. "Sasuke, where are you going?" Sakura asked.

"I'll be continuing my training, I don't have time to waste entertaining these two," Sasuke replied coldly as he left.

"What's with him? Did he get bit in the ass by a dog or something?" Naruto joked causing a lightning quick punch to the head by Sakura.

"How dare you say that about Sasuke-kun," Sakura yelled.

_These things never changes_. Yuki thought as she watched Sakura strangle Naruto.

"How long do you think it'll take you two to recover?" Kakashi asked.

Naruto and Yuki moved their body around to work out the clinks. "I'm still a little sore, but one more day of rest and I should be perfect," Naruto replied.

"Same here," Yuki replied.

"I see, that's reassuring, we only have less than a week before the time I suspect Zabuza to recover," Kakashi explained. "You two seem to have your own training set up, I'll leave you guys on your own," Kakashi said.

"Alright, it's time to do what me and Yuki put off for a long time anyways," Naruto said.

"Yo-you mean that," Yuki said unenthusiastically.

"Yeah, it's time to work on our meditation, we have to lengthen the time we can use **Yuukai** as much as possible until the day of the battle," Naruto said before sighing.

"It wouldn't be so hard if you could just sit still for more than 5 seconds," Yuki dead panned.

"R-right, I'll leave you guys to that," Kakashi said as he and Sakura took their leave back to training.

When Tsunami returned with food, she was surprised to find both Naruto and Yuki sitting cross legged, side by side, hand held in the middle, in a state of complete silence. The key to achieving perfect **Yuukai** was to achieve perfect harmony. Even their breathing had to become one. That was the first step. Beyond that lies in the perfect synchronization of their chakra, the hardest step. Meditation was the key to mastering the first step. The problem lies in the second, as Yuki had no clue how to do it.

-

Naruto and Yuki made lengthening **Yuukai** their main priority in the remaining days till the fight. Of course they still exercised with gravity tag to warm up, but meditation took the most of their hours in training. Today the two took it to the next level, in an attempt to get as much training done as possible. They sat in a meditating pose on the surface of a small lake, side by side.

Kakashi watched the pair from a branch off in the distance. "Those two, they're truly impressive, such a feat as that is not one many genin can claim to do. Naruto truly has come a long way since a month back. His growth has simply been astonishing. Yuki was a greater influence than I thought," Kakashi said silently to himself.

Moving away from the lake Kakashi made his way to where his two other genin were training. Sasuke had already completed and mastered the tree walking exercise. Currently he was refining his taijutsu and running up and down the trees to improve his pool of chakra. Kakashi turned towards Sakura. She had improved vastly in the last several days of training. Perhaps the first time she had ever trained seriously and her results were showing. Sakura had improved her small pool of chakra by a significant amount running up and down the trees. Besides perfecting her chakra control, Sakura took to training how to reinforce parts of her body with chakra for offense and defense after seeing Naruto and Yuki's usage of it. Sparring with a shadow clone of Kakashi, Sakura was able to advance her once useless taijutsu to something usable in battle.

The day of battle drew neared as the team 7 continued their training. On the fifth day of training, Naruto and Yuki broke out of their meditative stance and were surprised to find that night had already fallen. Yawning and stretching, Naruto laid back on the surface of the water, "How many hours have we been meditating?" Naruto asked staring at the stars in the sky.

"I'm not sure, I wasn't counting," Yuki replied as she laid on the surface of the water next to Naruto. Glancing at Naruto from the corner of her eyes, Yuki could see him scanning across the star littered sky with a calm and relaxed smile on his face. "Hey, Naruto," Yuki whispered softly which caused Naruto to turned towards her.

"Hm?" Naruto muttered confused as he stared at Yuki, who had a faint blush on her face.

"N-no, um, a-ah, can we go to the clearing with the flowers and herbs for tonight? I want to enjoy the night sky," Yuki replied. _Another failure_. Yuki thought with a sweat drop.

"Sure," Naruto said as the pair got up from the surface of the water and stretched out the clinks in their body from sitting crosslegged for so long.

Making their way to the clearing, the duo found a large tree to sit down, shoulder to shoulder as they looked up into the sky. After ten minutes of star gazing, Naruto felt something on his shoulder. Turning his head slightly to see, Naruto saw that Yuki had fallen asleep and was resting her head on his shoulder. "Didn't she want to look at the stars? She fell asleep already," Naruto said softly. "But, I guess the training must have been taxing, to remain that long on the water surface must have been more tiring for her," Naruto whispered. Naruto pulled out a rope and carefully tied their hands together without waking Yuki, before he rested his head against the tree. Yawning softly Naruto whispered, "I guess, I'm a little tired too. Good night Yuki." With that Naruto's head fell and rested on top of Yuki's as Naruto too drifted off to blissful sleep.

-

The morning after that, a beauty with long silky black hair and pale white skin was humming as she walked into the clearing where Naruto and Yuki were resting. She had a basket in hand and was here to pick herbs. When the girl arrived at the clearing she saw several birds perched on the motionless and peaceful bodies of Naruto and Yuki. Staring at the scene, Haku whispered, "That's cute," before her eyes narrowed when she realized who those two were. _Those two were the ones that managed to save their sensei from Zabuza-san, the Double Arts users_. Haku walked silently towards the sleeping pair. The birds perched on Naruto and Yuki flew away as Haku neared, her eyes were narrowed and she looked ready to strike.

Narut woke up to a melodic voice calling out, "Hello". Opening his eyes, Naruto found himself staring at a pale skinned beauty kneeling in front of him and Yuki. She had a gentle smile on her face.

"Hello," Naruto replied awkwardly as he stared at the girl before him. _She's as cute as Yuki, oh and Sakura-chan_. Naruto thought.

-

Yawning, Sakura walked into the dining room of Tazuna's house. "Morning," She said as she walked in. "Ah…," Sakura said as she scanned the room for Naruto and Yuki.

"Naruto and Yuki didn't come back last night?" Tazuna said worriedly.

"Yeah, he dragged Yuki-chan out for training after hearing your story last night. He is very simple sometimes," Sakura replied.

"I hope they're alright, they're children, and to be in the woods at night," Tsunami said worriedly.

"Not a problem, those two are more than strong enough to take care of themselves, they're excellent ninjas," Kakashi reassured.

"I don't know about that, if it's that deadlast moron, he might just get into trouble," Sasuke said spitefully.

A young boy looked worried after hearing Sasuke's words as he stared at the floor.

-

"You two will catch a cold sleeping in this place," Haku said kindly.

The basket of herbs in Haku's hands caught Naruto's attention. "You are here to pick up herbs? You sure are working early, lady," Naruto said.

"You too, what are you two doing here this early in the morning?" Haku replied.

"Star gazing after training, we fell asleep while watching the stars," Naruto explained.

"I see, that head protector… could you be a ninja?" Haku asked feigning surprise.

"Yeah, you noticed?" Naruto said happily.

"Your girlfriend doesn't have one, is she not a ninja?" Haku asked.

Haku could see a large blush on Naruto's face when he heard the word 'girlfriend'. "N-no, she's no-not my gir-girlfriend, well, sh-she is a gi-girl, and a very goo-good friend, bu-but not the way yo-you think, er-err, Y-yuki is my par-partner, sh-she is also a ninja," Naruto explained, stammering from embarrassment.

Haku giggled over how flustered Naruto became. "Why are you two training?" Haku asked.

"Because we want to become stronger," Naruto replied confidently.

"Stronger? But you two look very strong already," Haku said.

"No, no, we must become stronger!" Naruto said with a confident smile.

"Why… is that?" Haku asked.

"So we can become the strongest in the village, to become Hokage! We'll make everyone acknowledge our strength!" Naruto said with a huge grin.

"You say 'we will become the strongest', but if I remember correctly, isn't the Hokage one person?" Haku asked.

"Because, me and Yuki, we're like half pieces of one whole, we can never separate, we do everything together," Naruto explained. Haku noticed the ropes binding their two hands together. Naruto saw too and explained, "You see, Yuki and I must never lose contact of each other, otherwise she'll die, that's why."

Haku giggled before asking, "Than… is she important to you?"

"More than you can imagine," was Naruto's honest and serious reply. "To be honest, at first, we didn't get along very well, there were times I even thought to myself, why must this happen to me? Why do I have to be the one carrying the burden of keeping Yuki alive? But as I spent more and more time with her, those thoughts slowly vanished. I get this warm feeling whenever I see her smile, it's different than the feeling I get from Sakura-chan. Oh, and Sakura-chan is another one of my teammate. When Yuki is sad, I feel the need to make her happy again. It's a very strange unexplainable feeling. I-I don't want us to ever separate, it'll feel like a part of me would be missing," Naruto explained honestly.

Haku smiled gently and said, "That strange unexplainable feeling. Isn't it because you love her?"

Naruto cocked his head to the side as a blank and confused look appeared on his face. "Hm?" Haku giggled at how clueless and dense Naruto was before a strange smile appeared on her face. "Wh-what?"

"When a person has something precious to protect, that is when they truly become strong," Haku said. Hearing those words caused Naruto to remember the many people he heard about and met, those that were willing to protect those important to them, even if it meant putting their lives on the line.

"Yeah! I understand that very well," Naruto said with a smile.

"Yuki-chan, you must protect her and keep her safe," Haku said.

"Of course," Naruto replied with a thumb up.

A soft yawn broke the conversation between the two as they turned towards Yuki. Yuki rubbed her eyes with her free hand as she opened her eyes, before closing them again as she yawned again, causing Naruto and Haku to chuckle. The laughter directed at her caused Yuki's eyes to snap open quickly. There was a faint blush of embarrassment on her cheeks. "Wh-who's this?" Yuki asked when she noticed Haku standing in front of the pair.

"A friend," Naruto replied as he turned to Yuki.

Yuki stared at Naruto and nodded. When the two turned back towards Haku, she was already walking away. "You two will become strong, let us meet again somewhere," Haku said as she walked away.

"Sure!" Naruto said with a grin.

Yuki only stared between Naruto and Haku, confused as to what happened while she was asleep. "Oh, by the way, I'm a boy," Haku said.

The sudden curveball was like a brick to the face for Yuki and Naruto. _A-a boy? He's cuter than I am!_ Yuki thought in absolute horror, as she stared mouth gaping at Haki.

_A-a boy!?_ Naruto thought in horror when he remembered comparing Haku to Yuki and Sakura earlier. Dark clouds began to form over his head.

Haku turned back towards the pair, "just kidding," she said with a wink as she giggled and walked off.

Naruto and Yuki collapsed onto the floor, as they shared a laugh. Haku walked by Sasuke who was walking towards his training area. Sasuke stared after Haku with narrowed eyes as she walked by, but said nothing. He arrived at the clearing to find Naruto and Yuki laughing happily. Sasuke stared at the two with clenched fists. _Laugh all you can now, moron. I will be making her mine soon enough_.

-

By their seventh day of training, Kakashi, Sakura and Sasuke stood by the edge of the clearing as Yuki and Naruto stood in the middle. "Let's see how much of an improvement all that meditating has done, Naruto, Yuki," Kakashi said.

"Right," The two genin replied as they relaxed their body to synchronize their breathing.

"**Yuukai**!" Yuki said as the two genin became surrounded by a white aura.

Kakashi had a stop watch in hand as he watched the two genin hold onto the technique. At the twenty second mark, the white aura began wavering. The aura vanished completely at 30.28 seconds exactly as Naruto and Yuki collapsed onto the floor. "You guys managed to hold it for thirty seconds, that's six times longer than a week ago," Kakashi said.

"Da-damn, that's not enough," Naruto said from his position on the floor.

"I lost control of it around the twenty second mark, in a battle twenty seconds is probably our limit, moving around and fighting is much more different than standing still," Yuki explained.

"We've managed to master the first step, but, we can't synchronize our chakra properly," Naruto added.

Suddenly Yuki collapsed onto the floor unconscious. "H-hey, Yuki…!?" Naruto yelled worriedly but he too fell unconscious.

"H-hey what happened! Are you two okay?" Sakura yelled worriedly as she ran up to the two along with Kakashi.

"It's probably because they're too tired. The built up stress, along with that final **Yuukai**, it probably all kicked in at once," Kakashi explained. "They've been training twelve hours a day, for the last five days. That type of training is inhuman, it's a surprise they've even been able to remain standing. Give them a good night sleep and they should be completely recharged by tomorrow," Kakashi advised.

"Ri-right!" Sakura said.

"You guys too, I have a feeling tomorrow is the big day, get rested up, you'll need it," Kakashi said seriously as he went and lifted Sakura and Naruto after binding their hands together. _Perhaps their __**Yuukai**__ might be longer than they first thought. I would estimate they can hold it for at least fourty seconds in tip top shape, hopefully that's enough for the battle tomorrow. My body has completely healed now_. _I will win this time_.

-

Back in their headquarters Zabuza sat in a chair with Kimimaro and Haku standing next to him. Crushing the apple in his hands as a test of strength, Zabuza smirked. "You're almost completely healed," Haku said.

"Yeah, we should go soon, Haku, Kimimaro," Zabuza said. "I'll leave the Double Arts brats to you Kimimaro, as for me, I'll handle Hatake. Haku, you'll take down the two pathetic genin with them and the old man," Zabuza commanded.

"Double Arts, I wonder how it'll fare against my dances," Kimimaro said calmly.

"If it's you, there should be no problem. It might be annoying to fight at first, but once you get used to it, you can easily identify the pattern. The only thing you might have to watch out for is that white light of theirs, in that state their speed and strength increases dramatically, although it appears they can not hold it for longer than five seconds. They can use it continuously to lengthen the time. But with that bloodline of yours, you won't have any trouble. They're tricky though, they might have another trump card they've kept hidden," Zabuza said.

"Hmm, it's unlike you to worry about little brats like that, old man," Kimimaro said calmly.

"That kick of theirs almost killed me, even if I was underestimating them. Anyone that has come that close to killing me deserves some respect. They've accomplished a feat few can say they've done," Zabuza acknowledged.

-

Team 7, or in reality Kakashi placed Naruto and Yuki into the same Fuuton with a perverse smile on his face. Sakura, Tazuna and Tsunami sweat drops at his silly prank and perverseness. "You do know Yuki will probably try to kill you when she wakes up, right, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura dead panned.

"Hardly, she probably can't wait to thank me for putting her and her precious Naruto so close together," Kakashi said with a perverse chuckle.

A vein throbbed on Sakura's forehead hearing the perverted chuckle. Shrugging Sakura said, "Whatever, I don't care, it's your life you're putting on the line."

Suddenly the door slammed open as Inari stood at the doorway. "Why do you guys bother to try so hard, and train until you collapse? No matter how much you train, you're no match for Gatou's men. And to play around like this when you're going to be walking to your death… when facing the strong, the weak will only be killed!" Inari yelled before running off.

"Inari-chan…," Tsunami whispered softly.

"I'm sorry for that," Tazuna apologized.

"Don't worry about it, I'll go have a little talk with him," Kakashi said as he walked out of the room.

-

Inari sat at the edge of the wooden planks surrounding his house staring into the water as Kakashi walked up from behind him. "Can I join you?" Kakashi asked. Inari remained silent as Kakashi took a seat next to Inari. "I know you didn't mean any harm in what you said, you were just worried for us," Kakashi began. "You know… Tazuna-san told us about your dad-," Kakashi continued, "-you probably didn't know since you haven't really talked to Naruto, but Naruto also grew up without a father," Kakashi said as Inari had a look of surprise. "The truth is, Naruto has never met his parents and he's never even had a friend. I know you've had a tough past, but, he's had an even rougher past than you," Kakashi continued. _I personally can atest to that_. Kakashi thought grimly as he clenched his fist softly.

"H-huh, but I've never seen him cry or complain, not to mention, he has that beautiful onee-san as his girlfriend," Inari said.

Kakashi chuckled for a while at Inari's words. "Girlfriend huh, I guess people that don't know their circumstance might see it as such, well, I think they really like each other, so I won't be surprised it'll end up that way," Kakashi said. "But, Naruto and Yuki has only known each other for a month, that's a month of happiness in his thirteen years of growing up," Kakashi continued. "That boy, he might act stupid sometimes, he may be loud, but he's always trying his best to get people to acknowledge him, for his dreams he would risk his life at anytime. He is truly one of a kind. I may be stronger than him, but he has a presence that makes me want to walk along with him. Did you know, when we first realized that this mission involved fighting other ninjas, I wanted to pull my team back and leave your grandpa alone?"

"Bu-but you're here now, training until you're exhausted, risking your lives to protect my grandpa's," Inari said surprised.

"That's because of Naruto's words. '_How can we possibly let Tazuna-jii go on alone if putting our lives on the line will help him complete this bridge to save a whole country from oppression? Isn't this what we trained and work our ass off for? There may be those that call shinobi tools, but I will never believe in that philosophy. I live by my own way of life. Running with my tail between my legs at the first sight of danger is the last thing I'll ever do._' A ninja is a tool, that's what I was raised to believe. But, here comes along a thirteen year old genin and once deadlast of his class, living his life by his own philosophy, others might call him stupid, reckless and naïve, but I see something different. I see change. I truly believe Naruto has the power to change the ninja world," Kakashi continued, he noticed the look of disbelief on Inari's face, "You ask why Naruto is always smiling and not crying, I think it's because he's probably sick and tired of crying. He found his own path. He realized and found what it means to be truly strong, just like your father. I believe, Naruto may be the one that understands your feelings better than anyone else. Trust in him, trust in all of us, we'll save this country!" Kakashi finished with a smile.

Inari's eyes widened in surprise at Kakashi's finishing line, before he timidly nodded.

-

_Chapter 7: Fierce battle on the bridge! Double Arts pushed to the limits!_

A/N: Developing characters and sub-plots. Expect lots more of Kyuubi interaction. I personally like Kyuubi so I might try and incorporate him more. Hopefully the whole Kyuubi and Kakashi/Inari scene wasn't too corny. Also, if you didn't already figure it out already, Kakashi and Naruto's relationship is far different than in canon. Reason I'll keep hidden till I reveal it. Not much action this chapter, just more training and set up for the grand finale next chapter. Hope you enjoyed!


	7. The greatest partners

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: I believe this is the longest chapter of the story so far and this marks the finale of the Zabuza arc. Yay!

**Double Arts**

Chapter 7: The greatest partners

The next morning Kakashi, Tazuna, Sasuke and Sakura were prepared to head towards the bridge. "Please take good care of Naruto and Yuki, Tsunami-san. They've pushed their bodies to their limits in these past few days. They'll probably wake up soon though," Kakashi said with a wave.

"I will," Tsunami replied. "Be careful you guys."

"We will," Sakura replied.

"Ok! Let's super go!" Tazuna announced.

-

"Shall we go, Haku, Kimimaro," Zabuza said.

"Yes," Haku replied as she puts her hunter-nin mask on again.

"I can't wait," Kimimaro said calmly.

-

Yuki woke up feeling very comfortable, a feeling she was unable to describe. Opening her eyes, Yuki realized she had her head buried in the crook of someone's neck, and that very same person had their arms wrapped around her waist. Yuki's eyebrows twitched dangerously, prepared to castrate the person holding her until she realized the person was wearing orange. She only knew of one person that wore orange. The realization of that very fact caused Yuki to turn as red as a tomato as smoke began rising from her head. Her mind short circuited and the only thought left was. _This is a very good dream_. Yuki pinched her cheeks and yelp softly in pain. Her train of thoughts than went as such. _Pain = Not dreaming = Not a dream = reality = this is real = this is happening = only one person stupid enough to pull this prank = Kakashi = burn lots of orange books = castrate = kill_! "Ahhhhhh!" Yuki yelled when she collected her thoughts.

The yell scared the hell out of Inari and Tsunami and was enough to make Naruto wake up. Yuki pushed away from Naruto in an instant, as she moved away as far as their link allowed her to. She was turned away from Naruto with a huge blush on her face, punching the floor with one hand, muttering incoherent words, but one can hear the occasional 'Kakashi' and 'kill'. Naruto sat up rubbing his eyes with his free hands, unaware of what had just happened.

Tsunami and Inari ran into the room and found Yuki with a huge blush on her face punching the ground and the sleepy Naruto yawning. When Tsunami and Inari heard what Yuki was saying they sweat drop. _What did you know, Sakura-san was right_. Tsunami thought. _Good luck, sensei_.

"Tsunami-san, where is everyone else?" Naruto asked. Yuki had finally calmed down and the two were up and perfectly recharged.

"Sensei and everyone else has already left for the bridge," Tsunami replied.

"Geh, they left us?" Naruto said surprised.

"Naruto, I regret not using that Kage Bunshin Bakuretsu back than," Yuki muttered randomly.

"What's wrong with you Yuki? You've been muttering nonsense since you woke up," Naruto said confused. "Well, we're off!" Naruto yelled as he dragged Yuki behind him as he ran out the front entrance.

"Be safe you two!" Tsunami yelled after them.

"We will!" Naruto replied.

Leaping from tree to tree, Yuki was back to her normal self, her grudge held back for more important matters at hand. "Do you think the battle has already started?" Yuki asked seriously.

"Hopefully not," Naruto replied before a strange rustling caught the attention of both genin.

-

"Wh-what's this?" Tazuna yelled when the group arrived on the bridge. There were workers lying scattered across the bridge, all injured and in a pool of their own blood. Running up to the closest construction worker, Tazuna carefully lifted him up and asked, "Wh-what happened here?"

"A-a monster," the man replied before falling unconscious.

_C-could it be_? The trio of ninjas thought.

_This mist is_-. Kakashi thought as a strange mist began drifting onto the bridge. "Here they come!" Kakashi yelled as he, Sasuke and Sakura got into a defensive position around Tazuna. _So he really did survive and he's here_. Kakashi thought.

"Kakashi-sensei, th-this is, his **Kirigakure no jutsu**, right?" Sakura asked.

Sasuke was shaking uncontrollably again. "Long time no see, Kakashi. I see you're still with those brats. Poor kid, he's shaking again," Zabuza's mocking voice echoed from within the mist.

Suddenly a large number of Zabuza appeared from within the group's defensive formation. "I'm shaking from excitement," Sasuke said with a smirk.

"Do it Sasuke," Kakashi said as Sasuke vanished in a burst of speed and destroyed all the clones in an instant.

_You can't fool me_. Sasuke thought as he stared at the real Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro.

_Th-that boy, they had a third ally? Thi-this is bad, those two dots, the white hair, could he be fr-from that clan_? Kakashi thought as he stared wide eyed at the last member of the Zabuza trio.

"Hmph, he saw through my water clones, that brat has grown," Zabuza said calmly. "It looks like a rival has arrived, eh, Haku?" Zabuza said.

"Indeed," Haku replied as the two groups stared intensely at each other.

"Sorry to interrupt this supposedly important stare down, but where are those two users of Double Arts? Don't tell me they're going to be no show," Kimimaro asked in his monotone calm voice.

_He's aiming for Naruto and Yuki? Good, as long as they don't attack all at once, we can still stall until those two gets here_. Kakashi thought. "It seems my thinking was right on the mark. That masked one, standing right next to Zabuza. He was an accomplice all along," Kakashi said.

"He should stop hiding under the mask and face us," Sakura said.

"I'll fight him," Sasuke said. "Tricking us with that stupid act, I hate bastards like that the most," Sasuke continued.

"Uwahhh, you're so cool, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cheered like a fan girl.

_She might have improved a lot, but she is still way too hung up on him_. Kakashi thought with a sweat drop.

"An impressive young man," Haku began. "Even though the strength of a water clone is 1/10 of the original," Haku said.

"I'll just sit up there and wait until the Double Arts brats come, I have no interest in a weakling like him," Kimimaro said with a yawn as he leapt up the crane and took a seat there.

That comment struck a nerve with Sasuke as his veins visible throb as he glared at the white haired boy. _That Kimimaro-nii! He still goes around pissing off everyone he finds uninteresting_. Haku thought angrily as she charged towards Sasuke. "You shouldn't be looking away in a life or death match such as this," Haku advised.

-

"Inari, can you come down stairs and help me wash the dishes?" Tsunami yelled.

"Alright, but I'm in the bathroom right now," Inari replied.

Two men stood outside the door to the house, they each had a katana in hand. Tsunami turned around in horror when the door was slashed open revealing two samurais hired by Gatou. "Daughter of Tazuna, I presume," One of the mercenaries said.

"Sorry, but you're coming with us," The other one continued.

Upstairs washing his hands, Inari perked up in alarm when he heard his mother's scream. "Mom!" Inari yelled as he slammed open the door to the kitchen.

"A kid?" One of the two samurais said.

"Run away! Get away from here!" Tsunami yelled.

"Should we take him away too?"

"We only need one hostage," The other replied.

_Hostage_? Inari thought.

Licking his lips bloodthirstily, one of the two samurais began to draw his katana. "Then, I'll kill him." The words caused Inari to stare in horror as tears began forming.

"Wait!" Tsunami yelled. "If you touch that child, I'll bite my tongue and kill myself. You need a hostage right?"

"Heh, thank your mom, kid."

"Damn, I wanted to cut something."

"Give it a rest already. You already cut a bunch of things along the way. Let's just take her."

The two samurais took Tsunami away as Inari fell down onto his knees and began crying. _Mom, I'm so sorry. I'm a weak kid… I can't protect you. And I don't want to die, I'm afraid_. Inari thought. '_I live by my own way of life. Running with my tail between my legs at the first sight of danger is the last thing I'll ever do.' _Suddenly Kakashi's words from yesterday played across Inari's mind. '_I think it's because he's probably sick and tired of crying. He found his own path. He realized and found what it means to be truly strong_.' Inari remembered one last line from his father. '_If it's truly precious, even if you lose your life, you must protect it with these two hands_!' Inari's father's words echoed. _They're all so incredible, so cool and so strong_. Inari thought as he thought of team 7, his father, Tazuna and Tsunami. Wiping away his tears Inari stood up. _Will I also be able to become stronger, dad?_ With that thought Inari ran out the door after the samurais and his mother.

"Seeing your pretty white skin just makes me want to cut it up," One of the samurais said as they escorted Tsunami out from her house.

"Walk faster," the other one commanded.

"Wait!" Inari yelled from behind the two samurais and Tsunami. The trio turned around to face him.

"Huh?"

"Inari!" Tsunami yelled with worry.

"It's that kid," The bloodthirsty samurai said.

"Ge-get away from my mom!" Inari said. _I-I can become stronger too_! "Uwaaa!" Inari yelled as he charged at the two samurais.

"Geeze, what a stupid kid. Cut him," The leader of the two samurais said.

A bloodthirsty grin appeared on the other. "Finally, I've been waiting," the other one replied as the pair drew their katana.

"Inari!" Tsunami yelled.

The two samurais and Tsunami's eyes widened in surprise when the Inari they had cut turned into a piece of log. "Kawarimi no jutsu?" The samurais said surprised.

"Barely made it in time," Yuki said with a sigh of relief.

"Hehe, didn't you know, Yuki, a hero always shows up at the last second," Naruto replied rubbing the bridge of his nose with a fox like smile on his face.

"N-naruto… Yuki," Inari said as he stared at the two genin that had just saved his life.

"Great job, Inari. What you did just now, you're a strong kid," Naruto praised as he patted Inari's head affectionately.

"Well, well, if it isn't the loser ninjas that Tazuna had hired," the leader of the two samurais said.

"Thanks to your distraction, we were able to rescue your mom," Yuki said with a gentle smile. Yuki and Naruto had their backs turned to the two samurais as they talked to Inari. Tsunami was protectively placed behind the trio and away from the two samurais.

"Don't ignore us, you brats!" The samurais yelled.

"Th-they're attacking, will you two be alright?" Inari asked worriedly.

"Huh? Oh these two? They're just a couple of idiots," Naruto replied calmly. From behind the two samurais, two Naruto appeared from their shadows and knocked them out with a well placed kick to the back of the head. "See?" Naruto said with a grin.

"How did you two know those samurai were coming?" Inari asked confused. He remembered how much of a hurry Naruto and Yuki left the house.

"There was a boar in the forest," Yuki began.

"And a lot of slash marks along the trees leading to the house," Naruto added.

"So we got worried and headed back," Yuki finished.

"I-I see," Inari said.

"Inari, I haven't gotten to know you over these last couple of days, but, you're a great kid, a real hero," Naruto said with a smile as he patted Inari's head.

Inari could feel tears welling up in his eyes as he stared down onto the floor embarrassed. "I-it's all thanks to you and Kakashi-sensei," Inari replied timidly.

"Me? I don't recall doing anything," Naruto muttered out loud as he tilted his head confused, trying to think of when exactly he did something,

"D-damn it, I decided I wasn't going to cry anymore. You're going to make fun of me and call me a cry baby," Inari said.

"What are you talking about-?" Naruto asked.

"-There's nothing wrong with crying when you're happy!" Yuki and Naruto said in unison. They blinked and turned towards each other and laughed.

"You guys really are like lovers," Inari said innocently.

"What! There's no way that's true!" Yuki and Naruto denied.

"But, look at this picture I have here," Inari said as he pulled out a picture from inside his pocket.

It was a picture of Yuki snuggling against Naruto while they were sleeping last night. Yuki's eyes widened in shock before she swiped the picture from Inari's hand and crumpled it in her hands. "When did you take this picture?" Yuki asked embarrassed.

"Last night," Inari replied.

"Wh-what kind of person go around taking pictures of people sleeping!" Yuki asked.

"What? What? What was that picture? I didn't see. Show me Yuki!" Naruto said excitedly, not knowing what was going on.

"No way!" Yuki replied sharply as she stuffed the picture into her pocket. "We really need to hurry on to the bridge. If these two samurai are here, that means Zabuza is healed and the bridge is in danger," Yuki said turning from the two tied up samurai to Naruto.

"Right," Naruto replied seriously. "Inari, we leave you the important mission of protecting your mom. We're going to kick Zabuza and Gatou's ass and save this country!" Naruto announced.

Inari nodded with a smile. "I'll make sure my mom is safe, you guys, please be careful," Inari said.

"Heh, it sure is tough being the hero," Naruto said as he and Yuki began running back towards the forest.

"It sure is," Yuki and Inari agreed.

-

Kunai met senbon needle as Haku and Sasuke clashed. _I see. He can keep up with that speed already_. Zabuza thought.

"Sakura stay by Tazuna," Kakashi commanded.

"Y-yeah," Sakura replied.

"I don't want to kill you, but you won't just give up, would you?" Haku asked.

"If you already know, there is no point asking," Sasuke replied arrogantly.

Haku's eyes narrowed from behind her mask. "You see, I already have two advantages over you," Haku explained.

"Two?"

"Firstly, I have one of your hands occupied. Second, there are puddles of water all around us," Haku replied.

_W-what!?_ Sasuke thought surprised when Haku began quickly forming hand seals with one hand.

_One hand seals? I've never seen that before_. Kakashi thought.

_**Sensatsu Suisho**_. Haku thought as she stomped her feet once. The water around her began forming into needles as it surrounded Sasuke.

_You don't want to kill him? Oi, oi, you're doing anything but that, Haku_. Zabuza thought with a sweat drop.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled worriedly.

_Wh-what can I do? Speed, I need more speed._ Sasuke thought when he was surrounded. Suddenly he remembered what Kakashi did during his spar with Naruto and Yuki. _Kakashi was able to increase his speed exponentially by gathering chakra solely to his legs. I can do the same, I must remember the training_. Sasuke thought calmly as he formed a half ram seal with one hand. The instant the needles attacked, Sasuke leapt straight up, dodging them all. When the water from her attack fell to the floor, Haku was surprised to find Sasuke gone. Looking up she began leaping back as she dodged the shuriken coming from above. "You're pretty slow-," Sasuke said cockily from behind Haku, "-from now on, you will only be able to run from my attacks."

Sasuke attacked instantly, as he tried to stab with kunai in hand. Blocking with her forearm, Haku's eyes widened in surprise as she ducked, relying solely on her honed instinct when Sasuke threw the kunai in his hand with a flick of his wrist. _He's fast_! Haku thought before she was kicked and sent flying back towards Zabuza.

_Haku lost in speed_? Zabuza thought.

Haku quickly rolled back onto her feet next to Zabuza. "It seems like I have the speed advantage," Sasuke said arrogantly.

Haku remained silent, as her eyebrows twitched angrily when she heard Kimimaro talking from up above. "How embarrassing Haku, to get tossed around like that by a little brat," Kimimaro mocked in his 'annoying' monotone voice.

"I can't have you underestimating my team by calling them 'brats'," Kakashi said confidently. "Sasuke is Konoha's number one rookie, Sakura here is the brightest in the village-," Kakashi began praising as Sakura smiled happily at the praise. "As for Naruto and Yuki, well, um, errr, they're like, hmm, can't really call them hyperactive because Yuki isn't," Kakashi continued muttering softly to himself. "I guess we'll just call them the number one partners in Konoha," Konoha finished.

"Hehehehe, Kakashi, it seems that little victory of that brat has gotten to your head," Zabuza began. "Haku, we can't let this go on, don't you think so too?" Zabuza said.

"Yeah," Haku replied. "We can't have that."

_What's this sudden chill_? Sasuke thought when the temperature in the atmosphere began dropping.

Forming a seal Haku began forming something from the water around Sasuke. "**Makyo Hyosho**," Haku announced as the water around Sasuke flew into the air and formed a dome of ice mirrors.

_What is this jutsu_? Kakashi thought.

Haku walked up to her dome of mirrors and she walked into one of them. "H-huh?" Sakura muttered surprised.

On every ice mirror, a reflection of Haku appeared. Realizing the danger Sasuke was in, Kakashi rushed forward. "Damn it!" Kakashi said.

Zabuza reacted in an instant as he appeared in front of Kakashi. "Hey. Your opponent is me," Zabuza said with a smirk. "Against that jutsu, your student is finished," Zabuza announced confidently.

_Ugh, this is bad. Naruto and Yuki isn't here yet, not to mention there is also that one to deal with_. Kakashi thought as he glanced over at Kimimaro who was enjoying the show up on the crane.

Within the dome Sasuke had no idea what to do. "Well, shall we begin?" Haku asked calmly.

"W-what are these mirrors?" Sasuke asked.

"Let me show you… my real speed!" Haku announced as she drew two senbon needles from within the mirror.

Sasuke did not understand what hit him when a scratch appeared on his shoulder. _Ugh_. Within an instant, Sasuke was attacked from every direction, unable to properly defend himself against the high speed attack. "Ahhh!"

"Sasuke!" Kakashi yelled.

"Guaaa," Kakashi, Sakura, Tazuna and Zabuza could hear Sasuke yell as he was attacked from within the dome.

"If you try to run by me and help your student, I'll kill the two behind you," Zabuza said threateningly.

"Damn," Kakashi said.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled. "Tazuna-san, I'm sorry, but I'll have to leave you alone for now, I have to go help Sasuke-kun," Sakura said.

"Go for it," Tazuna replied encouragingly.

_A normal kunai won't work on those mirrors. There's no choice, I'll have to use an explosive note_. Sakura thought as she pulled out a kunai and wrapped an explosive note around it. She tossed the kunai towards one of the mirrors.

Haku's hands appeared from within the mirror and caught the kunai. Haku dropped it quickly when she realized there was an explosive note attached onto it. Haku pulled her hands back and shot off into another mirror before the note exploded. The mirrors withstood the force of the explosion but it was slightly cracked.

Sakura wasted no time as she ran up to the mirror caught strongest by the blast and punched it with all her strength. "Break!" Sakura yelled as her chakra covered right fist slammed into the mirror. Cracks began to widen along the mirror, but stopped. _N-no way_! _Even after all that it hasn't broken_. Sakura thought in horror.

"Sakura, watch out!" Kakashi yelled, but it was too late. Haku had shot out of a mirror and behind Sakura. By the time Sakura realized Haku was behind her she was unable to properly defend herself as Haku kicked her into the dome of mirrors.

Tumbling into the dome, Sakura quickly got back onto her feet and got into a fighting stance. Taking one look at Sasuke covered in cuts, Sakura said worriedly, "Sasuke-kun, are you alright?"

"Yeah," Sasuke replied.

-

Kimimaro watched while perched atop the crane for the last ten or so minutes. His team currently had the advantage in battle with both genin caught in Haku's ultimate technique and Kakashi unable to go help them. Kimimaro was getting bored quickly, until from the corner of his eyes at the edge of the mist, he noticed two shadows sneaking on the water towards the bridge. "So you've finally decided to come, Double Arts," Kimimaro said as he stood up.

Naruto and Yuki were quietly making their way towards the bridge by water walking. They quickly realized the battle had already started when they saw the dense mist around the bridge. Within the dense mist, their vision was near zero. What saved them from certain death was honed instinct, as they barely managed to step back as an almost invisible slash came from above. Leaping back to create some distance, but not far enough to lose sight of their attacker, Naruto and Yuki could vaguely see their opponent. A young man with white hair, he held two pure white swords in his hands. _Kakashi-sensei never mentioned about a guy with white hair. They had another ally_? Naruto thought.

"Naruto, we should get out of this mist, we can't possible fight to our full potential here," Yuki whispered.

"Right," Naruto agreed as the two began running out of the mist. Kimimaro was running right after them. The three fighters jumped out of the mist and took their respective distance across the surface of the water. "Who are you?" Naruto asked.

"When you ask for someone's name, it is common courtesy to introduce yourself first," Kimimaro replied.

"I'-," Naruto began before he was interrupted.

"My name is Kaguya Kimimaro, age 15, blood type A, I was born June 15," Kimimaro introduced in an emotionless voice.

Naruto's eyebrow twitched in irritation. "For some reason, he really pisses me of-," Naruto muttered before his eyes widened as he moved his head to the right as something flew by him at great speed. Naruto was unable to dodge it completely as the cut on his cheek from the projectile began bleeding.

Kimimaro had one arm held up and his index finger was pointed at Naruto. "**Teshi Sendan**. Your reflexes aren't bad. I was aiming for your left eye, but you managed to dodge it at this range," Kimimaro said calmly.

"Yuki, did you see what he just did?" Naruto asked.

"I-I'm not sure, something flew out from his index finger, but I don't know what it was," Yuki replied.

"Instead of whispering over there, attack, show me the power of this Double Arts that managed to garner the respect of the old man," Kimimaro interrupted the two.

"No choice, let's go, Yuki," Naruto said as the pair attacked.

_I see. The old man was right. Their movements are still lacking, they always move in a straight line. The only reason they've been doing so well so far is because of how unorthodox their fighting method is. So far they've been covering their weakness with tricks. If you were to compare their fighting style to ones that have been taught and refined over the many years, this Double Arts is nothing but a newborn infant. Deception, quick thinking, underestimation, and the power to suddenly double their strength and speed, if one is to understand all that and not underestimate them for even a second, they aren't even near jounin level yet._ Kimimaro thought as he evaded and parried Naruto and Yuki's attacks. _Though_ _I must admit that for two people holding hands while fighting, the flow of their attacks is very well coordinated. But against I who holds the bloodline of Kaguya, all their efforts will merely be in vain_. Kimimaro thought as he stabbed his white bone sword and arm right between Naruto and Yuki.

Yuki was the only one who spotted the next attack, but it was too late as bones shot out instantly from Kimimaro's arm. Yuki managed to shift her body a little as one bone gashed the the side of her body and the other one pierced slightly into the arm connecting her and Naruto. Biting back from yelling in pain, Yuki glanced towards Naruto and her eyes widened.

Naruto suffered far more damage as he did not see the attack coming. One of the bones had pierced the side of his body as the end poked out from the other side. The other had stabbed into his forearm. Blood was dripping down from both injuries as Naruto's orange jacket began to seep with blood. Naruto did not allow the injuries to hold him back as he countered in the instant he was hit. He gritted his teeth as he fought back from yelling in pain and focusing all the chakra he could muster in that instant into his free hand Naruto punched Kimimaro as hard as he could right in the face. The blow sent Kimimaro skidding and rolling once across the surface of the water before he regained his footing. "Gwah," Naruto let out a grunt of pain as he and Yuki leapt back to create as much distance from Kimimaro as possible.

"Naruto! Are you alright?" Yuki asked worriedly she had turned away from Kimimaro.

"Stop, don't look away from the battle, I'll be fine. The damn fox will stop the bleeding soon enough," Naruto reassured as he pulled out ninja ropes from his tool pouch and began to quickly bind Yuki and his arms together. "I think he hit a nerve or something, I can't feel my arm right now, we have no choice but to bind it," Naruto explained.

"R-right," Yuki replied.

"Yuki, we're going to use **Yuukai**, we can't keep up with him in our normal state," Naruto said grimly.

_We only have 20 seconds or a minute in total if we forcefully lengthen the time of Yuukai. But will a minute be enough? If we fail to take him down before than, we'll lose consciousness_. Yuki thought.

"That was an excellent punch, I did not expect you to actually pull off a counter in that instant," Kimimaro praised as he rubbed his bruised cheek. He was caught off guard and was unable to properly defend against an attack reinforced by that much chakra. The force of the blow was nearly enough to break his jaw. _That kid is an exceptional ninja. I can see why the old man would praise him. He managed to gather that much chakra within that split second, his chakra capacity must be frightening._ Kimimaro thought as he stared at Naruto. _As a ninja alone, that boy would definitely be far stronger than he is now. That girl is only dragging him down._ Kimimaro was broken out of his thoughts when Naruto and Yuki began charging at him again. That action surprised him as he had expected them to run away and avoid him until they could at least recuperate from their injuries a little or get help from those on the bridge. Kimimaro was caught completely off guard when two fists buried into his gut when Yuki and Naruto flashed white and doubled in speed. Skidding back across the water, Kimimaro braced himself this time as he attacked. The three fighters were match blow for blow, evading, parrying and counter attacking. "Dance of the Camellia," Kimimaro whispered as he thrust his bone blades at almost invisible speed.

Increased speed allowed the pair to keep up as they evaded the lightning quick strikes and mix in attacks of their very own. Bystanders would watch in awe at the graceful and elegant dance like battle before them. Blood dripped from Yuki and Naruto's wounds onto the water below turning it muddy red before being diluted by the water. "_Haven't we been holding onto this for longer than twenty seconds now_?" Naruto asked Yuki.

"_I'm not sure, I haven't really been keeping track of how much time has passed,_" Yuki replied before the two stopped talking to focus on the raging battle in front of them.

_By doubling their speed and strength, they're managing to keep up with me now. Their horrible movements have been covered too thanks to having almost similar speed as me_. Kimimaro thought as he dodged and attack. He had tried to randomly shoot bones out from his body to attack the pair. But it would seem they've reached their maximum point of concentration and was able to see it and evade it. _Guess I have no choice but to step this up. Though I vaguely remembered the old man saying they couldn't hold this strange light for longer than five seconds. It's probably been thirty seconds at the least now_. Kimimaro thought. "Dance of the Willow," Kimimaro announced leaping back to gain some distance as bones began popping out from his elbows, knees and shoulders. He dropped his two bone blades which were now replaced by two bones protruding from the palm of his hands.

"_Just looking at that is making me cringe and shiver, that looks freaking painful_," Naruto said to Yuki.

"_Y-yeah_," Yuki replied weakly, she had a weak stomach for things like that.

The three fighters wasted no time to begin fighting again. What Naruto and Yuki did not understand was that they were currently at a disadvantageous situation as the clash finally reached the forty seconds mark. The white aura of Yuukai began wavering as they began to lose control of it. "_We're losing control of Yuukai, Naruto, we'll have to use our second one soon_," Yuki said.

"_Right_," Naruto replied as he leaned back from the thrust of Kimimaro's hands. His eyes widened in surprise when the bone began to lengthen at great speed towards him. "_Jump back, Yuki_," Naruto said quickly as he and Yuki both leapt back at the same time. Naruto could feel himself sweating heavily. He had nearly been stabbed right through the head. He had felt the tip of the blade prickling the tip of his nose before he and Yuki managed to get out of the way.

_How did they both move back at the same time? What trick did he use to convey the message to the girl? She couldn't have seen what was about to happen and go along with him that well._ Kimimaro wondered. _More importantly, the white aura surrounding them has been acting rather weirdly for the past while. It's wavering a lot, and it seems to be growing dimmer_. Kimimaro thought.

"_No choice, we're using the second one, Naruto_," Yuki said as felt herself starting to get disorientated. She and Naruto rushed Kimimaro again. _**Yuukai**_. Yuki thought as the white aura expanded and grew brighter in an instant. Even after the power up from Yuukai, she still felt faint and she was sweating hard. Her breath was coming in shorter pants now. Her skin was turning paler than normal as well. _D-did I lose too much blood from my injuries? Wh-whatever happens, don't give out on me, my body. I can't drag Naruto down._

_It's back to normal again_. Kimimaro thought when he saw the aura flare up as the three fighters began clashing again. _This battle is going no where. I will show them, the reason why they never stood a chance as they are now_. Kimimaro thought. "Dance of the Larch," Kimimaro announced as razor sharp bones began sprouting from all over his body, giving him an impenetrable barrier from unarmed attacks.

"_D-damn, he can sprout bones from all over his body?_" Naruto said surprised.

Yuki didn't even have the time to reply as Kimimaro charged at the two without fear. Naruto and Yuki could do nothing but dodge as they are unable to retaliate. Yuki was caught off guard when Kimimaro extended a bone at incredible speed towards her. Unable to properly dodge, Yuki braced herself for the coming hit, but her eyes widened in surprise when it was Naruto who was hit. Naruto had placed his remaining usable arm in the way of the attack to slow the extending bone enough so he could pull Yuki protectively towards him and away from the attack. Pulling his arm free of the bone, Naruto jumped away from Kimimaro with the frozen Yuki. Naruto's blood stained Yuki's pure white jacket as she stared with wide eyes, frozen. "Na-naruto, yo-your arm," Yuki said slowly.

"It'll be fine, I still have my legs," Naruto reassured.

"B-but t-to protect me, w-why?" Yuki asked.

"That question is so stupid I don't even want to answer you," Naruto replied. "Get a hold of yourself, Yuki, I need you to win this, I can't do it alone," Naruto encouraged. "I protected you because I wanted to, but also because there is something only you alone can do," Naruto whispered softly.

"M-me?" Yuki said.

"Do you remember when you were teaching me how to reinforce my attacks? There was that one time when you got so frustrated about teaching me, you punched the tree. The resulting impact blew a hole through the trunks of that giant tree and toppled it. That's the only move we have left to turn this around. We must end this with our last Yuukai. Focus on remembering how you felt. I'll do my best to keep him at bay. All of our remaining chakra is yours to use. Gather as much as you can," Naruto explained with a gentle smile. "Yuki… I trust you. Because you're here with me right now, I can keep striving ahead, because of you, the fact that we would lose here never even crossed my mind," Naruto began. "I know we can do this, because we're the greatest partners, right?"

"Of course," Yuki replied as she clenched her only usable fist tightly. "I'll put everything into this blow, we'll win this in one shot," Yuki announced. _I won't let you down. I refuse to be the one that will drag you down_. Yuki thought.

"Are you guys done chatting?" Kimimaro asked calmly. He was so certain of his victory he did the very thing he said he would not do, underestimating his opponents.

"Thanks for giving us the time to talk, for that, we'll repay you by kicking your ass," Naruto replied.

"Amusing, you can still say those words when you no longer have the use of both your arms," Kimimaro said.

"Wrong, Yuki and I are one, her arm is my own and as long as we have that we will win!" Naruto replied confidently.

"So what you're saying is, that girl's body is yours, you're a rather possessive boy aren't you?" Kimimaro taunted.

Yuki and Naruto's face turned brighter than a tomato as smoke began rising from their head. "T-that's not what I meant, y-y-you asshole!" Naruto retorted childishly. "Enough talking, let's finish this!" With that Yuki and Naruto got over their embarrassment and charged towards Kimimaro.

_I have to remember what happened that time, I was so angry I wasn't even sure what I did. It just happened spontaneously. Afterwards, no matter how much I tried I couldn't repeat what I did again. If I remember correctly…_

-Flashback-

"Naruto, how hard is it to understand that to reinforce your attacks you must spread the chakra along the entire area you want to reinforce," Yuki said sounding very irritated.

The pair was in the training ground practicing the use of reinforcement techniques, but after five hours of repeated explanation, Naruto was still unable to grasp onto the technique properly. "But I am!" Naruto replied equally as irritated. "I would have gotten the technique down by now if you would just stop yelling into my ears every second," Naruto said angrily. A Yuki Heel Stomp and the resulting yell later, "I'm sorry," Naruto apologized. "So maybe I did overreact, but I'm trying my hardest you know!"

"I just don't see why I have to stand here for five freaking hours watching you punch and fail repeatedly over and over again," Yuki began her rant. "If you would just stop gathering your damn chakra in one single chakra point and instead spread it out, you would have the damn technique done," Yuki continued. "I mean, look at this, this is what you're doing!" Yuki yelled out as she lets lose all her accumulated stress and pent up anger into one punch. "See, nothing happens!" Yuki said with a huff without even bothering to look at the result of her punch. Naruto was gaping at her with mouth and eyes opened wide. "W-what?" Yuki asked.

Naruto pointed a shaking finger to the tree Yuki had just punched. "T-t-that," Naruto replied with a shaky voice. _Holy crap, if she punches me with that, I'm dead. Note to self, refrain from pissing Yuki off in the immediate future_. Naruto thought as he stared at the humongous hole Yuki's punch blast through in the tree.

"I-i-I did that?" Yuki said with absolute surprise as she stared at the hole she made. The tree began shaking and creating a cracking sound as the two looked up into the sky. The top of the tree was starting to tilt.

"Run! It's going to collapse!" Naruto yelled.

-End Flashback-

_I remember gathering my chakra into one chakra point and releasing it in the punch. But, I tried that again afterwards. It had no effect at all. Wait, maybe there is a clue some where during the day I succeeded in doing it. Think, think, think! After training that day, we went to Ichiraku ramen. I didn't do much training that day so I was bored and not to mention cranky. I should make sure not to get angry at Naruto like that again. _Yuki began before her thoughts began to trail off. _Wait… I didn't do much training? But I was really tired the rest of the day_. Yuki realized as she began piecing together the information. _Gathering chakra into one point and releasing it, getting tired after one use? All my repeated attempts to recreate that attack, I never placed much chakra into it. I'm so stupid, how could I not see it sooner. We can do this, we can win!_ Yuki thought as she finally pieced together their last resort. "_Let's go, Naruto. Give me ten seconds, I'll put everything we have into this, we'll blow him away!_" Yuki said.

"_Alright!_" Naruto replied.

"**Yuukai**!" Yuki announced as the white aura flared up again.

"This is the last clash, the victor will be decided!" Yuki, Naruto and Kimimaro yelled in unison.

_All our chakra, I must tap all of Naruto and my chakra into this attack_. Yuki thought as she began gathering the chakra from their pool into her left fist.

_Ten seconds, I have to give Yuki ten seconds to focus. I must protect her from harm until than_. Naruto thought as he guided Yuki to avoid being hit.

_What the hell is with that movement, it's as if they're doing a waltz on water_. Kimimaro thought as Yuki and Naruto managed to avoid his attack. Yuki's eyes weren't even open but yet the two was moving in perfect harmony.

_Done_. Yuki thought as her eyes snapped open. "_I'm ready, Naruto_," Yuki said.

"Alright!" Naruto said as the two suddenly stopped dodging and narrowed the distance between them and Kimimaro.

"Eat this!" The two yelled in unison as Yuki twisted her whole body for a punch with her left arm.

"The blow you're putting everything in is a normal punch? Have you become so desperate you've lost your mind?" Kimimaro asked confidently. "That punch will not reach me," Kimimaro stated as his spikes of bones began lengthening.

"We'll win!" Yuki yelled as her fist neared the wall of bones. _Releasing the chakra at a single point, I'll punch my way to his gut_. Yuki thought. The bones gashed her sides and her thighs as her fist connected where the guard was the weakest. The resulting blow crushed the shield of bones.

_Impossible! My bones that have a greater density of even steel, you actually managed to destroy it_. Kimimaro thought as his shield of bones was crushed by the fist as Yuki punched straight through the bones and into Kimimaro's gut. The strength of the blow was so tremendous that Kimimaro's body was shaped into a 'V' as he was sent flying away as he skidded across the water surface and rolled to a stop. _I see, as a pair, they bring out each other's full potential_. Kimimaro thought as he felt his consciousness fading. _B-but, I, I refuse to lose here_!

Yuki and Naruto were panting for breath as they stared at the prone form of Kimimaro. "W-we won!" Both genin announced happily despite all the injuries they had sustained.

"N-not yet," Kimimaro said out loud, although the genin couldn't hear him. Coughing out blood, Kimimaro struggled to push himself back up.

"N-no way, he's trying to stand?" Naruto said.

Panting, Kimimaro managed to pick himself onto one knee. While the three ninjas were locked in a staring contest, the mist began to lift. The intensity of the moment was broken when a loud scream came from above the bridge. "Sasuke-kun!" Sakura's voice yelled out.

Naruto and Yuki's head whipped over to the source of the yell instantly. The mist had cleared without their notice and the pair could see a dome of mirrors. Two noticeable figures stood within their sight, one was Kakashi and the other Zabuza. Zabuza had a large number of large dogs biting into him. Kakashi was standing in front of him making hand seals. A loud chirping like that of a thousand bird could be heard all the way down the bridge as Kakashi began running towards Zabuza, the ball of lightning in his hands held at his side. Haku suddenly appeared from no where and stood in front of Zabuza. "Save them… please," Kimimaro's voice drifted into Naruto and Yuki's ears before he fell unconscious.

Taking a deep breath, Naruto yelled at the top of his voice, "KAKASHI-SENSEI, STOP!"

Haku braced herself for certain death as she stood in front of Zabuza. She had formed several ice mirrors in front of her to hopefully stop the attack. But she knew that such a half-ass countermeasure formed within seconds couldn't possibly hope to stop the powerful attack in Kakashi's hands. Kakashi thrust his hand covered in lightning as Haku appeared. "Raikiri!" Kakashi yelled as his attack easily pierced through the ice mirrors.

"Kakashi-sensei, stop!" Naruto's voice came from a distance. It was loud and powerful enough for Kakashi to completely stop in his track. Kakashi's hand was within centimetres of piercing Haku's chest as he pulled back and allowed the chakra to dissipate.

"Consider yourself lucky, Haku, you were just saved from certain death," Kakashi said with a sigh. "Now where is that student of mine," Kakashi wondered as he looked around.

"Y-you're just going to stop?" Haku asked.

"Kakashi, by sparing our lives, we might just turn on you now," Zabuza said menacingly even while being held down by dogs.

"You wouldn't, you have too much pride to do something like that. Besides, I don't really think we're enemies anymore," Kakashi stated as he turned to the end of the bridge. There, a fat man and a large number of mercenaries were gathered. The dogs biting onto Zabuza had disappeared in a poof.

"Zabuza, Zabuza, to think you would fail me like this, I no longer have a need for you," Gatou said arrogantly. "Now that you're all weakened and near death, with the mercenaries I have hired, we can just kill you all off now."

"Hmph, Kakashi, you may be right," Zabuza said calmly. "Allow us to join you, it seems our pay check just decided not to pay, we no longer have any obligations to fight your team now," Zabuza said calmly.

"Excellent, I could use some help getting rid of these mercenaries," Kakashi added as the two jounin stood side by side.

"Me too," Haku said.

"Than count us in," Naruto and Yuki said as they landed on the bridge. Yuki had Kimimaro on her back as she placed him down gently.

Zabuza whistled as Haku's eyes widened in surprise. "You guys actually managed to beat him?" Zabuza said shocked.

"You two look like you've been through hell," Kakashi said, looking at the many wounds Yuki and Naruto had sustained in the battle. Naruto had three major wounds and many tiny scratches in which had already healed. Yuki had a large gash on her side and her arm was bleeding. She had many tiny wounds as well. The skin around her left knuckle had all been torn from the impact of her finishing blow. Several large cuts from the last clash were also bleeding heavily. Yuki also looked much paler than Naruto, not to mention she was panting heavily.

"I believe a draw would be more correct, if he didn't waste the last of his strength calling for us to save the two of you, we might have been the one to have lost," Naruto admitted honestly.

"We don't have much time left until we faint too," Yuki added softly.

"Heh, for the five of us, mere seconds would be more than overkill," Zabuza said cockily as the five ninjas charged towards the mercenaries.

In the ensuing fight, Zabuza decapitated Gatou as Gatou's body fell into the waters below. The conscious mercenaries, seeing that their pay check was gone all jumped for their escape boats below. "Haha, that was easy," Naruto said tiredly.

The group of five glanced towards the end of the bridge and saw an army of people led by Inari in the front. "Wh-what happened here?" One of the adults behind Inari asked.

"It's over, everything is over," Tazuna announced. "Gatou is dead, our country is saved!"

The villagers all dropped their weapons at his words. "R-really?"

"Y-yeah, it's all thanks to them, these are the heroes of Nami no Kuni, the brave ninjas that fought for our freedom," Tazuna announced.

"Heh, Inari, I know that a hero is supposed to arrive late, but that's too late, you idiot," Naruto said before he collapsed when the white aura of Yuukai faded away. Yuki fell next to him with a smile, now that their mission was truly over.

"Shut up, idiot Naruto," Inari said embarrassed as those still conscious laughed.

"H-how can you all be laughing, S-sasuke-kun was killed by that bitch, how can we treat them as friends and heroes now? They were fighting us just minutes ago!" Sakura yelled out as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Calm down Sakura, Sasuke is fine. He's just unconscious right now. Senbon needles are weapons that rarely kill," Kakashi reassured.

"I avoided aiming for his vital points, he should be fine after treatment and good rest," Haku explained. "I'm sorry," Haku bowed.

Sakura ignored her as she tended to Sasuke. "What will you do now, Zabuza?" Kakashi asked.

"We'll take Kimimaro and take our leave," Zabuza replied.

"Wait, why don't you stay with the rest of us until you heal, you know they say that yesterday's enemy is today's friend," Kakashi said. "I'm sure Naruto and Yuki wouldn't mind," Kakashi added. "Tazuna-san, will that be alright?"

"Of course, I trust you, hero!" Tazuna replied.

"Excuse me, can we get some doctor and stretchers here, we have several very injured friends that require immediate treatment," Kakashi said. "We also need everyone to start rounding the mercenaries up so they won't run amok when they wake up," Kakashi continued as he took command of the scene.

"I'll help treat them as best as I can," Haku said as she ran off to begin first aid.

"You, come treat Sasuke-kun first!" Sakura yelled.

"I do feel indebted to treating Uchiha-san first, but, your teammates and my brother, they're in far worst conditions. If their injuries aren't treated soon they will enter a very dangerous state," Haku replied.

"R-right…," Sakura replied softly as she turned away from Haku.

-

Two days passed since the battle on the bridge. At the morning of the third day, Yuki was the first to awaken. Yuki lifted her sore and bandaged left arm to block the glare of the sunlight as she slowly adjusted to the light. Her body was sore all over. Injuries big or small burned and ached. When Yuki finally adjusted her eyes, she was surprised to find Sasuke leaning against the wall watching her. He was bandaged up after the battle. When their eyes met, Yuki suppressed a shiver as she stared into the orbs devoid of emotions. "You're awake," Sasuke's calm voice broke Yuki out of her thoughts.

"Y-yeah," Yuki replied. "Er, what are you doing here?"

"We've been taking turns watching over the two of you in case anything happens," Sasuke answered before he suddenly smirked. "This is perfect, now that the dead last isn't awake to bother us," Sasuke continued. "Become my partner."

"I refuse," Yuki replied instantly. _I wasn't wrong, this person, he was watching me. This was his goal?_ Yuki thought, remembering all the times she felt Sasuke staring at her.

"Why? With my powers and yours, we would become unstoppable. Why would you stay with a dead last loser such as him? I am superior to that dead last in every way," Sasuke asked confused.

"Dead last, Dead last, a person like you who can only think in past tense-," Yuki muttered angrily through gritted teeth. "-You don't understand how great Naruto is, someone who is selfless, someone who works his hardest for his dreams, he lives everyday forging ahead, shaping his own future," Yuki continued.

"Great? That fool can't do anything without you, once a dead last always a dead last, he is doing nothing but dragging you down," Sasuke retorted.

"Dragging me down? Is that how you see it?" Yuki asked softly as her bang shadowed her eyes. "I've never once thought that, instead, I constantly feel that I am dragging him down and stopping him from reaching his true potential," Yuki finished.

"Do you still feel that way, Yuki?" Naruto's voice cuts sharply into the tense atmosphere.

Yuki and Sasuke turned to Naruto and saw that he had his eyes opened, but he remained lying on the futon. "Naruto! When did you wake up?"

"I was awake ever since Sasuke asked you to become his partner," Naruto replied calmly. "Sasuke, I'll say this once, and only once, stay away from Yuki. I could care less if you call me dead last, but if you dare to touch her, I'll kick your ass," Naruto continued as he and Sasuke glared at each other.

Doing what he does best, Kimimaro slid open the door at the tensest moment and stuck his head in, "Uchiha, it's best you listen to what he says, he has it somewhere in his head that Hikari's body belongs to him and only him, he's a very possessive person," Kimimaro said in his emotionless voice.

Yuki and Naruto blushed heavily as Naruto yelled, "What the hell are you doing here, you idiot! I don't think that!"

"Hmph," Sasuke grunted as he turned around without another word as he pushed open the door and walked past Kimimaro.

"You know, I really thought we could be best friends…," Naruto's voice drifted into Sasuke's ears as he left.

"Well, that was quite some drama, I was half expecting a fight to break out and that I would need to gallantly step in," Kimimaro said calmly as he walked inside the room. His torso was bandaged but overall he looked pretty much unharmed from the battle.

"So, why exactly are you here?" Naruto dead panned, ignoring what Kimimaro just said.

"Your sensei invited us to stay, apparently they're thinking of asking Hokage-sama and see if we could join Konoha," Kimimaro replied.

"Hah, as if that's possible, you three are missing-nins," Naruto said.

"That's true, I don't think three missing-nins would be allowed entry that easily," Yuki agreed.

"Your sensei suggested the idea because he planned to use your connection with the Hokage to do it," Kimimaro explained calmly.

"If it's that guy, he probably would," Naruto said with a sweat drop.

"As for why I walked in just now, it just so happens that I was walking by, and when I heard you say that line, it was much too interesting to not interrupt," Kimimaro explained in a monotone voice.

"You didn't sound interested just now," Naruto dead panned.

"Kimimaro-san, are you alright now?" Yuki asked.

"Yeah, although I haven't fully recovered from the damage of that last punch, I didn't suffer enough damage over the course of the battle to keep me down," Kimimaro replied.

"I bet we can interpret that as, although you may have won, in the end I am the true winner," Naruto said with a small grin.

"If you wish to interpret it as such, but it is true that as of now, I could kill the two of you without any efforts," Kimimaro replied calmly as he stood up. "I believe it is time for me to go, you two should have much to discuss," Kimimaro said as he walked towards the door and opened it again before stopping. "I don't want to butt in as this is your problem to deal with, but I believe, that neither of you are truly dragging the other down. The two of you support one another, that's your strength, never forget that," Kimimaro added before he left, closing the door behind him.

Silence followed as the two genin were unsure what to say. "Um," they said at the same time as they turned to one another. Staring at one another the two broke into laughter.

Calming himself, Naruto began, "Yuki, you know… I've never once-."

"-I know, I know that you've never thought that way," Yuki interrupted with a small smile. "It's just insecurities I have. I mean, if you weren't there during the fight encouraging me, I would be lost, I wouldn't know how to deal with everything that was happening," Yuki continued as she stared at Naruto who was still lying on his back. "But hearing Kimimaro-san say those words, I guess I've gained a little more confidence," Yuki finished.

"That guy, he might be a blunt emotionless fool who steps in at the most irritating times, but, he's a nice guy, I'm sure he said those words to help us," Naruto said with a grin.

"Yeah," Yuki agreed before she blushed heavily when remembering Kimimaro's words from both the battle and just now.

"Yo-you know… about Sasuke," Naruto said softly.

"I would never accept his offer," Yuki replied with a reassuring smile. _And the reason behind that is obvious if you weren't so dense_. Yuki thought with mental sigh. "Don't you think that a lot of people out there want to separate us? First it was Kyuubi, now it's Sasuke," Yuki said thoughtfully.

"Yes, but, we'll never give in, right?" Naruto replied before turning to Yuki.

"Yeah," Yuki said as the two exchanged smiles.

"Yo!" Kakashi announced as he opened the door.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto greeted from his sleeping position as he turned towards Kakashi.

"How are you feeling? We're heading back to Konoha as soon as the bridge is complete," Kakashi said. "Now that all the men in the village are working on it together, the completion of the bridge won't be too long now."

"That's great," Yuki said excitedly.

"Yeah, I'm glad we succeeded," Naruto added.

"The ones who truly saved this country are the two of you. If the two of you didn't stand against my orders back than, nothing would have changed," Kakashi praised proudly.

"Hehehe, I don't know, it's kind of embarrassing if you put it that way," Naruto said. "Besides, we couldn't have done it without everyone's help," Naruto added before his stomach growled loudly.

"You're hungry? Well, can't blame you, the two of you have been asleep for the last two days," Kakashi said with a small grin. "I'll ask Tsunami-san to prepare some food for you," Kakashi continued as he stood up.

"Thanks!" The two genin said gratefully.

Once Kakashi was out of the door, Naruto struggled to get up. "Yuki, can you help me up?" Naruto asked. "My arms haven't healed yet. I can barely move them right now."

"Of course," Yuki replied as she helped Naruto up carefully.

"Thank you," Naruto said as the pair got onto shaky feet. Two days of sleeping did that to people.

Walking slowly out to the kitchen, Naruto found Zabuza, Kimimaro, Haku, Tazuna, Inari, Kakashi and Sakura sitting at the table or standing around. "Morning," Naruto greeted as he and Yuki walked up to the table and took a seat.

"Naruto-niisan, Yuki-oneesan, you're both awake," Inari greeted happily.

"Yeah, as if these injuries can keep me down," Naruto replied with a large grin.

"Naruto-san, Yuki-san, how do the injuries feel? There are no problems I hope," Haku asked.

"Perfectly fine, thanks… wait a minute!" Naruto replied before snapping his head towards the girl.

"Y-yeah, is there a problem?" Haku asked confused.

"W-why are you here? W-wait, you were on the bridge as well, what's going on?" Naruto asked.

"Hmm, that's right, you guys were passed out right after the battle, you never met Haku," Kakashi said thoughtfully. "Haku was the missing-nin that took Zabuza away at the end of our first battle, but you were passed out than and since you never made it to the bridge till the end of the battle, you might have not noticed," Kakashi explained.

"Is that so, I'm glad we meet again, Haku," Naruto said honestly.

"Yes, I feel the same," Haku replied with a smile.

"Everyone, take a seat, the food is done," Tsunami announced.

-

Team seven, Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro stood on the bridge before a group of four who were present to see them off. The bridge had finally been completed after weeks of hard work and upon its completion marked the time of good byes. Inari, Tsunami, Tazuna and their close friend stood before team 7. "So this is good bye, huh, although we finished the bridge, this is super sad," Tazuna said to Kakashi.

"Yes it is, thank you for everything," Kakashi replied.

"No, it should be us who say that. You guys have done so much," Tazuna said.

Naruto and Yuki were with Inari. Naruto was kneeled down and talking with Inari, the two of them had gotten much closer during the recovery period. Inari was staring at Naruto with teary eyes. _Ergh, every time we leave a village children would be crying, please don't make this a common occurrence_. Naruto thought but he too was sad. "Hey, don't worry Inari, we promise we'll come to visit," Naruto reassured with a grin. "Right Yuki?"

"Of course," Yuki agreed with a smile.

"Y-you better," Inari said.

"Inari, you're sad right? It's alright to cry you know," Naruto said, he was shaking a bit himself. _Ahh, my tears are threatening to fall too_.

_You're so obvious, Naruto_. Yuki thought with a giggle.

"I'm not going to cry, but you can, Naruto!" Inari yelled as he fought back his tears.

"Fine, let's go Yuki. Later Inari," Naruto said as he turned around dragging Yuki with him. Yuki turned back and waved a small good bye at Inari.

"A-ah," Inari muttered softly as he watched his hero leaving.

"Oh yeah, we need a name for this bridge, right?" Tazuna said as the large group of ninja were out of range.

"Yeah," Tsunami agreed.

"Well I have a super perfect name," Tazuna announced.

"Yeah? Let's hear it."

"The Bridge of Heroes-," Tazuna said with a proud smile. "-For the heroes who changed Inari's heart, who in turn inspired the people's heart."

-

Yuki had a sweat drop as Naruto started crying the second he turned away from Inari. Inari was crying in exactly the same way as well. _Well, it is because of his affectionate heart, I fell in love._ Yuki thought. _It really feels good when I acknowledge these feelings. I like Naruto, not because he saved me, but because of his kind and selfless heart that always strives ahead. _Yuki mentally acknowledged as she glanced towards Naruto with a smile._ Over these past two months, we've faced up and downs and battles_. Yuki continued her trail of thought as flash backs of the battle with Kakashi, Zabuza and Kimimaro came to mind. _There are those that tried to separate us_. As memories of the meeting with Kyuubi and Sasuke comes to mind. _Time and time again, I've said and done stupid and hurtful things due to my own insecurities. Every time, Naruto had to step in to protect me and to help me. But there will be no more of that, today, a new Hikari Yuki is born, I won't rely on Naruto to protect me every time, I want to walk next to him proudly._ Yuki thought with new resolve.

"Yuki, you seem happy," Naruto said when he noticed Yuki's cheerful look. He had stopped crying once the large group had crossed the bridge.

"Yeah-," Yuki replied as she turned to Naruto with a large smile. "-I've been thinking how glad I am to have met you," Yuki explained as she turned away with a happy hum.

"Wh-, is that so," Naruto said scratching his cheek slightly embarrassed, a faint blush on his cheeks. _Yuki seems different… but in a good way. I wonder what happened._

-

_Chapter 8 preview: A mission with everyone!? Let the party begin!_

A/N: Wooooohooooo, character development. This arc was fun to write. Although I only focused on Naruto and Yuki's battles due to the other battles being no different than canon. This arc will probably be one of the last few times you'll ever see an insecure Yuki thinking she is dragging Naruto down or thinking of separating from him. By the way, I know some people enjoy the different approach on Sasuke's character and might be disappointed in that simple interaction, but the Sasuke sub-plot has yet to actually develop. It'll probably turn into something quite ugly in the future, if anything, it's still rather innocent so far. I'm also extremely pumped for the next chapter as it'll be the start of a short original arc I have in mind, expects some extra OC and of course the main cast. It serves a dual purpose of advancing the plot and for me to develop other characters before the chunin exam. Oh, have I mentioned how much fun I have playing with Kimimaro's character? If you actually read this block of text, kudos to you and I hope you enjoyed! Regarding Yuki's final attack, you got it, its Tsunade's super strength technique. But don't expect Yuki to use it like Tsunade, not only is her control not that perfect yet, Yuki lacks the chakra to use it as a normal attack. **Also, an important question I have, in a formal party within the Naruto world, between Kimono and Tuxedoes, what would be a better choice?**


	8. One after another!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: I apologize for the huge, huge, huge delay. I'm not dead yet! I like this story a little too much to give up. This chapter was extremely hard to write, as there is absolutely nothing but things to move the story along. Next chapter introduces my OC villian and I'm very excited to get there. I've pretty much figured out the plot all the way up till the end of the chunin exams (or even the end of part one maybe) thanks to this huge delay. To be honest, I was quite lazy with the whole Zabuza, Kimimaro and Haku situation. I'm kind of meh about them joining Konoha, but Kimimaro was just too fun of a character to let go of. Also thank you to all the replies saying that kimono was the choice (even if it was ages ago)!

**Double Arts**

Chapter 8: One after another, why do you all say that!

"We're back!" Naruto announced loudly as the large group of ninja arrived at the gates of Konoha. He and Yuki stood at the front of the group. "Ichiraku ramen, Ichiraku ramen," Naruto chanted as the group strolled ahead. "I'm going to eat a month's worth!"

Yuki sighed softly as she muttered under her breath, "I wonder how much ramen I can take before I start getting tired of it again."

Kakashi walked by Naruto and Yuki as he went up to the check-in station. "Kakashi, you're finally back," the guard said.

"Yeah, the mission's goal changed half way," Kakashi replied.

"Those three are?" The guard asked as he turned towards Zabuza, Kimimaro and Haku.

"They're with me, we're going to take them to Hokage-sama now," Kakashi explained.

"Right, have a good day."

"Now, let's go meet Hokage-sama. Sasuke, Sakura, I'm sure you two must be tired from the trip, leave the debriefing to us," Kakashi said to the two genin.

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow than, everyone," Sakura said with a large smile as she literally skipped away.

Without saying a word, Sasuke turned and walked away. "You know, doesn't this situation seem awfully familiar?" Naruto asked Yuki.

"Yeah," Yuki replied.

At the Hokage tower, Naruto slammed open the door, "Yo, did you miss me, old man?" Naruto announced as he strolled into the Hokage office with Yuki behind him. Kakashi, Zabuza, Kimimaro and Haku followed silently.

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up from his paperwork with a smile, "Naruto, Yuki and Kakashi, you're back from the mission I see," Hiruzen greeted as his eyes glanced over to the three extra ninjas behind the trio. "And you've brought some more people along," Hiruzen continued.

"Déjà vu all over again," Naruto dead panned.

"Tell me about it," Yuki agreed.

"You need not tell me your reason for bringing them, I can already guess, but, Kakashi, they're missing-nin. Can they be trusted within our walls?" Hiruzen asked seriously.

"T-," Kakashi began before Naruto interrupted loudly.

"Damn right they can, they're good people, besides, in reality, only Zabuza is a missing-nin," Naruto interrupted loudly. "So why don't you just dump him in the academy as a teacher or something for a few months to make sure he is a good guy and to get him out of sight," Naruto said jokingly.

"O-oi, you brat, you're joking right," Zabuza said bewildered.

"Nope, besides, seeing as though you raised both Haku and Kimimaro yourself, a bunch of brats should be no problem," Naruto said with a grin.

"Interesting, I for one agree with that idea," Kimimaro said from behind the group.

"Oi, oi, not you too Kimimaro," Zabuza said angrily.

"But, won't it be dangerous? I mean, he is ill-tempered, and loves to slash things. Those poor kids might get hurt," Haku said thoughtfully.

"Exactly!" Zabuza said happily as he pointed to Haku. "You can't trust me to wat-," Zabuza continued before Haku interrupted.

"-That's why I'll join him as his assistant! I can keep him in line. If he even thinks about hurting those poor kids-," Haku said as she pulled out several senbon needles with a soft evil chuckle.

The look on Haku's face gave Zabuza a shiver as he slumped down in defeat. "Very well, I will trust Naruto and Kakashi's faith in the three of you. Since Haku and Kimimaro aren't officially declared as missing-nin we can make them official Konoha-nin within the week. As for Zabuza, he will be placed under watch at all times for three months before a decision shall be made," Hiruzen said with a sigh.

"Hahaha, I pity the unlucky sob that'll have to watch over that guy," Naruto said with a laugh.

"Well, sob, enjoy watching over him," Hiruzen said to Naruto as everyone within the room, except Kimimaro laughed at the surprised look on Naruto's face.

"Me, us?!" Naruto yelled.

"That's right, you and Yuki of course" Hiruzen replied. "Since you're the one who vouch for them, it is only natural it becomes your responsibility to watch over them as well," Hiruzen continued. "Besides, there are three extra rooms in the apartment I brought you, perfect, don't you think?" Hiruzen finished with a smile.

Naruto looked completely devastated as Yuki patted him comfortingly on the back. "Uzumaki, sorry for having to put you through this-," Zabuza said sincerely as Naruto turned to him with comedic tears welling up in his eyes.

"You're not a bad guy afterall," Naruto said with an over exaggerated smile, tears flowing out of his eyes as he whipped his head back.

"-I know you want to enjoy your days living with Hikari doing this and that, but I guess you'll have to pu-," Zabuza continued as Naruto face vaulted.

With a humongous monstrous face, Naruto yelled, "What the hell is this and that! Why the hell are you old men all perverts!"

Zabuza started laughing as he turned to Kimimaro, "You're right, the brat does over react towards anything relating him and Hikari, awfully suspicious, don't you think," Zabuza said softly but loud enough for the rest of the room to hear as Naruto seethed from behind them.

"Yuki, help me out here," Naruto whispered to his partner. "You've been remaining quiet for quite sometime," Naruto continued. _Normally you get angry at things like that too_.

"Why? I am curious as to why you do that too," Yuki said teasingly as she joined in the conversation. _After acknowledging my feelings for you, it would be stupid for me to get embarrassed that easily._

"Yes, Uzumaki, why do you do that?" Zabuza and Kimimaro joined in as Zabuza chuckled menacingly.

"I'm curious too, Naruto," Kakashi and Haku added.

_Although I already know the reason_. Haku thought as she remembered the conversation between Naruto and her back at Nami no Kuni.

"W-w-why are you all ganging up on me!? Th-I-ahhhh," Naruto said confused as his eyes slowly became whirlpools as he struggled to think of an answer. Naruto was saved by a soft knocking on the door.

"Come in," Hiruzen said as the group stopped teasing Naruto and turned to the door.

The door opened revealing Kurenai, Asuma and Gai. "Asuma-sensei, Kurenai-sensei and um, er, Gai-sensei!" Naruto greeted.

"Naruto, Yuki and Kakashi, when did you guys get back?" Kurenai greeted.

"Yo, long time no see, tough mission I heard," Asuma said.

"Yes, we ran into some unexpected trouble, but all is well," Kakashi replied.

"My eternal rival, how good it is to see you again," Gai greeted as he posed making the rest of the people cringed in disgust.

"Naruto and Yuki, why don't you show the three of them around the village, Kakashi, you stay, I have something to tell the four of you," Hiruzen said seriously turning to Naruto and Yuki before settling back on Kakashi.

"Yes sir," Kakashi replied.

"Yatta! We're free, let's go Yuki," Naruto said as he excitedly dragged Yuki towards the door.

Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro followed after the pair with a shrug. Haku bowed thankfully towards Kakashi and Hiruzen before she closed the door. "Good, now, as for the reason I've called for the four of you together like this," Hiruzen began.

-

"And this is Ichiraku ramen!" Naruto announced proudly as he and Yuki walked into the small stand with Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro.

When Ayame and Teuchi spotted Naruto and Yuki they greeted happily, "Naruto, Yuki, you're finally back."

Comedic tears began welling up in Naruto's eyes as he greeted the pair, "I've missed the two of you so much, Ayame-neesan, old man. I haven't eaten a single bite of ramen in so long."

"When you put Naruto and ramen together, this is the result," Yuki explained to the trio knowingly.

The group sat down and began chatting until their ramen was ready. Naruto and Yuki stopped and watched the three former mist-nins eat. Zabuza was the first to take a bite. "This isn't quite bad, definitely the best I've had in a long time," Zabuza said as Naruto grinned.

"Old man, if you got him to say that, this ramen has to be the best!" Naruto explained happily.

"Haha, is that so?" Teuchi replied as he continued to cook ramen for Naruto's large order.

Haku was up next as she took a small bite, "It's delicious," Haku said with a smile as she continued eating.

"Hehe, but the one I'm most interested in is, him," Naruto said with a chuckle as he turned towards Kimimaro.

Kimimaro calmly ignored the rest of the eyes on him as he slowly lifted the ramen out of the bowl with his chopstick. Taking a bite of it, "not bad," Kimimaro said as he turned his head towards the group.

"The light, it's blinding me!" Naruto yelled as he covered his eyes, along with the rest of the group as Kimimaro's eyes shone brightly.

A short while later, when the group finally rubbed the light out of their eyes they turned fearfully to Kimimaro who continued to eat normally as if nothing happened. "He actually loves it a lot, doesn't he?" Yuki said with a sweat drop.

"Y-yeah, so much it's scary," Haku agreed.

"I never knew your eyes could work that way, hmmm, it'll be a really effective technique in battle," Zabuza said thoughtfully.

"Not just in battle, if we get lost in a dark cave, just give him a bowl of ramen and we have ourselves a flash light," Naruto joked. Naruto paled as Kimimaro lifted one hand and shot out a bone sword from the palm of his hand. The blade stopped mere inches from piercing Naruto's head. "Forget I said that," Naruto added quickly as the bone sword retracted.

After eating at Ichiraku the group continued to walk around the village as Naruto and Yuki showed the trio around. It was mid-day when the group finally finished as Naruto and Yuki opened the door of their apartment. Walking in tired, the two dropped like a bag of flour onto the couch. Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro walked in after them. Haku made sure to lock the apartment door before they took a look around. Zabuza whistled softly after taking a look around, "Nice place you guys got here, it's probably one of the more expensive suite in the village," Zabuza said. "How did two mere genin afford this?"

"It was the old man, he said he was going to buy us an apartment, but we never expected this," Naruto explained.

"Yes, we were just as surprised," Yuki added.

"He probably brought it as your wedding gift," Kimimaro said calmly. "The extra rooms are probably for when you go at it li-," Kimimaro continued before Haku interrupted loudly with a small blush on her face.

"Don't even think about finishing it, Kimimaro-nii!" Haku said with a huff. "Look what you did to them!" Zabuza was howling with laughter as he watched.

Kimimaro turned towards the pair of genin who were now completely red and had fainted from his words. "I suppose it was much too simulating for them, and to think he called other people perverts when his mind is so deep in the gutter," Kimimaro said calmly.

"Shut up you idiot! I'm not a pervert," Naruto yelled angrily.

"Huh, he's already awake, that's a quick recovery," Zabuza said as he tried to stop himself from laughing.

"And we're not married-," Naruto continued.

"-Yet right?" Kimimaro finished off. Naruto seethed angrily as he ignored Kimimaro with a pout.

"Hahaha, he's not denying it, he probably wants it to happen," Zabuza teased.

"Hey, I think it's time to stop with the teasing," Haku said happily but in her hand she held out several senbon needles threateningly. Zabuza visibly paled as he turned away, Kimimaro remained calm as ever, but he too turned away and went after Zabuza to explore the rest of the apartment.

"Naruto-san, you two must be tired after all that travelling. Why don't you take Yuki-chan and go have a rest. We can get ourselves sorted out," Haku said with a gentle smile.

"R-right," Naruto said as he carefully lifted Yuki up and walked towards their room. "I'll leave watching over those two idiots to you, Haku-chan."

"Just leave it to me," Haku replied with a smile.

_W-what's wrong with me? For a second, I actually thought that might not be so bad_._ I'm only thirteen, besides the one I like is, Sakura-chan, right?_ Naruto thought with uncertainty as he walked carrying Yuki into their room. Binding their hands together like a mindless drone, Naruto continued his thoughts. _Ahhhhh, I'm so confused. I'll just sleep and worry about it another time, yes, that's what I'll do._ With that Naruto drifted to sleep.

-

"I hope the four of you understand the importance of this mission," Hiruzen said. "I have already sent four squads of ANBU on lookout, but I want each of your teams to mix into the party itself, being genin, they have lesser chance of standing out," Hiruzen continued as Kakashi puts up one hand. "Yes?"

"To not stand out is impossible with Naruto around, Hokage-sama," Kakashi stated.

The rest of the group present in the room sweat drops at Kakashi's words. "In the past that may have been a problem, but Yuki should be able to keep him in line," Hiruzen replied.

"The boy has already been whipped," Asuma said as he pulled out a cigarette. A sharp glare from Kurenai was enough for him to put it away.

"Yes, exactly like someone else I know," Kakashi teased from under his breath.

"Hokage-sama, just leave this to my team and I, with us on the job, it'll be a success for sure!" Gai announced with a nice guy pose.

"R-right," Hiruzen replied with a small cringe at the pose. "I will leave the briefing of the mission to the each of you, you will be setting out tomorrow, good luck. Let's hope nothing actually happens," Hiruzen said seriously.

"Yes sir!" The four jounin replied as they disappeared in a poof.

"This is the only hope for the pair to enter, hopefully this little gamble works," Hiruzen whispered to himself as he turned to the giant stack of paperwork he still had to finish with a sigh.

-

At precisely six, a knocking on the door of the apartment awoke everyone. Yuki, Naruto, Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro walked out of their rooms, each with varying degree of drowsiness bid good morning to each other as Naruto and Yuki walked towards the door. Naruto and Yuki yawned softly as Naruto opened the door. "Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here this early?" Naruto mumbled tiredly.

"It's six isn't it? Are you an impostor?" Yuki asked with a soft yawn.

Kakashi sweat drops at the accusation. "You guys have a horrible image of me, don't you?"

He received a 'what do you think' look from both Naruto and Yuki. By now Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro had already returned to their rooms. "Come on in," Naruto said as he opened the door to allow Kakashi entry.

The three ninjas walked towards Naruto's large living room as Naruto and Yuki sat down on the couch. Kakashi stood in front of the pair. "The reason I've come this early is to brief the two of you of our upcoming mission," Kakashi began as Naruto and Yuki perked up, now giving their full attention. "I came to you guys first because I have to make sure that Naruto understands the importance of this mission," Kakashi continued.

Naruto and Yuki looked confused at Kakashi. "Kakashi-sensei, I know Naruto may be an idiot from time to time, but, he is always aware of how important every mission is," Yuki said.

"I agree, but, as you said, he acts like an idiot from time to time. We can not have that during this mission, you must act professional at all times, meaning, no loud outburst and keeping your hyperactive self down," Kakashi said seriously as he turned towards Naruto.

This time it was Naruto's turn to look serious. "Kakashi-sensei, just what is our mission? It is unlike you to be like this," Naruto asked.

"We will be mixing into a large birthday festival hosted for the 28th birthday of feudal lord Sakamoto where many important people of the fire country and within our alliance will attend," Kakashi said as Naruto and Yuki's eyes widen slightly in surprise, but the pair remained silent as Kakashi continued. "We will act as guest, but in reality we will be hidden body guards within the party itself acting as the last line of defence in case our allies in the front line potentially fail." Kakashi explained.

"The most important people within our country?" Naruto whispered softly.

"Yes, and it is our job to guard them from any possible attack," Kakashi replied. "I do not doubt your fighting prowess, in fact, I feel having you two on the mission is a must, but, we must not disrupt the party in any way," Kakashin continued. "Besides briefing you two, I must tell you to buy different clothes, preferably more formal wear, your ninja clothing must go for the duration of our stay," Kakashi finished.

"Right, I understand, I'll be on my best behaviour, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said with a confident nod.

Kakashi smiled, "I know you will, we will be gathering for the mission at the west gate, 3 p.m sharp, make sure to pack up your gear and finish shopping by than," Kakashi said.

"Right!" The pair of genin replied.

"I'll be going now, see you guys than," Kakashi said as the pair escorted him out.

"Right, let's go prepare, Yuki," Naruto said.

"Yeah."

-

The pair of genin landed at the west gates several minutes before the scheduled time. Once arriving, they noticed only a few members have arrived. Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma and Hinata were the only people present. "Hey!" Naruto greeted happily. "Hinata-chan, Kurenai-sensei and Asuma-sensei, you're all going to be on this mission too?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, let's do our best," Kurenai replied.

"Umn," Yuki agreed with a nod.

"Naruto-kun, Yuki-chan, how have the two of you been?" Hinata asked softly.

"We're doing great," Naruto replied with a grin. "We got much stronger from our last mission," Naruto continued.

Yuki kept quiet as the two conversed as she waited patiently for the rest of the members for the mission. "You guys are coming along too?" Kiba said excitedly as he and Shino arrived at the meeting spot.

"From the looks of it, all of us rookies are on this mission," Shikamaru said when he and Chouji arrived.

A loud trampling caused the group to turn towards the source. From the distance two people were running side by side, a large dust cloud trailing behind them as they rushed towards the west gate. Shikamaru and Chouji leapt out of the way instantly as Sakura and Ino shot by them. Skidding to a stop, Ino and Sakura turned towards each other and glared. "I win!" They yelled in unison.

The pair continued to bicker until Sasuke walked towards the meeting spot. They stopped instantly and ran towards him. "Haaah, I thought they would never stop," Kiba whispered softly, he had both his ears covered. Akamaru barked in agreement from within Kiba's jacket.

"Is this all of us?" Naruto asked excitedly, he was all fired up to go after seeing all his friends.

"Not quite, we're still waiting for the last team," Kakashi replied with a sweat drop.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as he stared at Kakashi. "Now that I think about it, Gai-sensei was there too, wasn't he?" Naruto asked with a small cringe.

Kakashi did not need to answer as Gai and Lee's voice came from the distance. The three teams turned towards the spandex wearing duo with various looks of horror. The pair was running towards the group while holding many bags in each of their hands. Neji and Tenten were behind them. "I apologize for my team's lateness, we were buying suitable clothes for the mission," Gai explained.

"What do you mean 'we', the only people who needed to buy clothes were the two of you," Tenten said with narrowed eyes. "How can anyone possibly have nothing but green spandex in their closets," Tenten added with a sigh.

The rest of the members present sweat drops at Tenten's words. _Maybe I was wrong thinking Naruto would be the only one catching attention, those two might be even worse._ Kakashi thought before he coughed to get everyone's attention. "Right, allow me to briefly explain our mission," Kakashi began. "We'll be travelling to the Village of Tea. The journey should take us two days. By the time we arrive, we should arrive in the afternoon before the party starts at night, we'll take that time to scout out the area. We'll be changing out of our ninja gear when we reach the next town, so I hope all of you have brought your casual wear and a set of formal clothing for the party itself," Kakashi continued seriously.

A chorus of 'yes' was Kakashi's replied. "Good, let's go," Kurenai said as the four jounin took lead. The large group of genin followed behind them.

"Hey, so what happened on your mission? You guys were gone for a whole month," Kiba asked Naruto and Yuki as the group made their way leaping tree to tree towards their destination.

"The objective of the mission changed, it changed from a C-rank escort mission into an A-rank guarding mission against missing-nin," Naruto explained.

"A-rank?!" Kiba exclaimed with surprised.

"What kind of missing-nins did you guys fight?" Chouji asked curiously.

"They were three mist-nins. Zabuza of the mist and his two subordinates Haku and Kimimaro," Naruto answered with a grin.

Shikamaru had a curious look on his face as he asked, "you talk as if you know them very well, Naruto."

"Well, they're kind of guest in our apartment now," Yuki replied for him.

"They're in our village now?" Ino asked surprised.

"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei helped talk Hokage-sama into allowing them," Sakura replied sounding slightly bitter, probably still angry at Haku.

"So, did you guys defeat them?" Kiba asked.

"Yes, I am curious, how did you two fare against a missing-nin?" Shino asked.

"We won," Naruto replied with a grin. "It was a dangerous fight that took everything we had," Naruto continued.

"I bet Sasuke-kun took one of them out all by himself," Ino said with admiration.

"Hahaha, that guy went and got his ass kicked, he almost died," Naruto said with a laugh.

"Shut up, Naruto you idiot! Don't say that! We had to fight someone stronger than you!" Sakura said defensively as she looked worriedly at Sasuke before attempting to hit Naruto.

Naruto would have been hit too if Yuki didn't pull him out of the way. "Sakura-san, we're jumping from tree to tree, could you refrain from punching this idiot until we're on even ground," Yuki said with a sigh.

"R-right," Sakura replied with a huff as she glared at Naruto who laughed nervously.

"Thanks," Naruto whispered to Yuki.

"If we weren't jumping from trees to trees I would have let Sakura-san hit you, you deserved it for taunting Sasuke like that," Yuki said.

"I haven't forgotten what that idiot tried to do, he deserves at least this much," Naruto said with a pout.

"So, how much stronger have you guys gotten?" Kiba asked.

"A lot stronger," Naruto replied quickly as he and Kiba exchanged a competitive look.

For the rest of the trip the genin continued to chat about the past month since they've last saw each other. It was night time when the large group arrived at the town they would be resting before continuing their trip. Entering the hotel they would be staying for the night, the group began paying for their rooms. They got eight rooms with double beds and one room with a single bed. Before the group even had a chance to suggest their roommates, Kakashi began pairing them up. "Naruto and Yuki, you're room 201," Kakashi began as he tossed the key in his hand towards Naruto. Naruto caught it quickly before he and Yuki began walking towards their assigned room. The pair was tired from the day of travelling and was sleepy.

"Good night everyone," the pair murmured as they walked off.

"Sakura and Ino," Kakashi continued as he tossed the 202 key to Sakura. Those two were arguing for them to pair with Sasuke, naturally Kakashi took it upon himself to stop the fighting.

Looking totally dejected, the pair of kunoichi walked off with a small murmur of 'good night'.

"Well, continuing on, Kiba and Shino, Hinata and Tenten, Sasuke and Neji, Gai and Lee, Shikamaru and Chouji," Kakashi announced as he tossed the keys to each pair. "Asuma, you're coming with me, Kurenai, you'll be taking the single suite," Kakashi finished as he handed out all the keys except his own.

The large group of ninja began making their way towards their own rooms.

In room 201 later that night, Yuki and Naruto had just finished pushing the double beds into one. They had just finished taking a shower and brushed their teeth. Binding their hands together Naruto and Yuki got into their respective bed. "Hey, Naruto, do you think we'll actually do anything this mission?" Yuki asked softly, she was staring at the white ceiling.

"I'm not sure, although I'm itching to get into a serious fight after all the training we did with Kimimaro, Haku and Zabuza back in Wave. But with a mission like this, let's hope nothing serious happens," Naruto said maturely.

"Yeah, you're right," Yuki agreed. "So, how is it, having the chance to talk to your friends again?"

"It was great," Naruto replied.

"That's good," Yuki murmured. Yawning softly, Yuki muttered a soft "Good night," before she turned around and went to sleep.

"Night," Naruto whispered before he drifted to sleep too.

-

The pair of genin was woken up by a knocking on their door. Getting up tiredly from their bed, Naruto and Yuki dragged themselves over to the door. Opening it, they were surprised to find Kakashi standing outside. "Get dressed up casually, we're setting off now," Kakashi said seriously.

"R-right," The two genin replied as they quickly closed the door and began rummaging through their newly brought clothes.

After changing and brushing their teeth, the two genin quickly left their room to meet up with the rest of the teams. The group returned their keys at the front counter and gathered in front of the hotel. "We're going to eat breakfast, and as a group, we'll walk the rest of the way to the Country of Tea," Kakashi said. "Does everyone understand?"

"Yes sir," All the genin except for Neji, Shino and Sasuke replied.

"Now, anyone have any suggestion of what we're going to eat?" Kurenai asked.

Naruto was quick to reply as he yelled excitedly, "Ram-owwww-," Naruto finished as he yelped in pain.

Yuki had done a Yuki Heel Stomp the second she realized what Naruto was suggesting.

Sweat dropping at their antics, Asuma suggested a random restaurant they saw upon entering town. After breakfast their journey began yet again, this time they moved by foot.

Two hours away from the town, Naruto was already whining from boredom. "This is so slow and boring," Naruto whined. The large group was slowly travelling as the Country of Tea was within walking distance. "I want something to happen, anything!"

As if appearing on cue, a large number of bandits surrounded the Konoha ninjas. "Way to go, Naruto," Kiba dead panned.

"Make sure you don't open your mouth like that at the party," Kakashi added with a sigh.

"Haaah, I'll keep that in mind," Naruto replied.

"Hey! Stop ignoring us! We're fifty men. At least act a little afraid!" The apparent leader of the bandits yelled angrily.

_Oh right, we don't have our forehead protectors on_. Most of the Konoha ninjas realized. The battle started instantly when Gai and Lee excitedly attacked.

It was safe to say that the fifty bandits were slaughtered, minus the killing of course. But, they had already served their purpose. Unknown to the large group of Konoha ninjas in the process of tying up the bandits, one lone shadow up on the tree tops leapt off stealthily.

_This is strange. There wasn't any news about such a large group of bandits hiding out in the forest attacking travellers. Surely someone should have known_. Kakashi thought warily as he watched the genin tie up the bandits. Shikamaru appeared to be deep in thoughts as well as he was rounding up the unconscious bandits.

The four jounin shared a look of understanding. Creating four Kage Bunshin, Kakashi left them to watch over the bandits. "Let's keep moving, we must arrive before nightfall," Asuma said.

The rest of the trip to the country of tea was luckily uneventful. The group was no longer delayed and had managed to arrive at the scheduled time. "This is it, isn't it?" Ino said excitedly as the group stared down at the beautiful village below them. The town was beautifully decorated to welcome the VIP from around the country. There were already lots of carriages in the distance. Making their way down to the gates of the village, the four jounin made their way up to the guards to present their identification. After several minutes, the group was finally allowed entry. Naruto was already jumping with excitement as he stared around the village with a smile.

"Calm down Naruto, we're heading straight for the mansion where the party will be taking place," Kakashi said.

"But before that, we'll be making a stop at the hotel so we can get changed," Asuma said.

"Ohhh, I can finally wear the new kimono I brought," Lee said excitedly. _Not to mention I'll get to see Sakura-chan and Yuki-chan in kimonos_. Lee thought with a faint blush.

Sakura and Yuki shivered slightly, but shook it off as nothing. "Are you cold, Yuki?" Naruto asked.

"No, I'm fine Naruto," Yuki replied.

Arriving at the hotel that was specially prepared for them, Naruto and Yuki made their way to their designed room to get changed. Yuki had brought a simple white kimino while Naruto, being Naruto, got an orange kimono. Naruto was tapping his foot impatiently, arms crossed, as he waited for Yuki to finish fixing her hair up for the party. "Co-," Naruto began to whine before Yuki interrupted.

"Just give me a few more minutes, I'm almost done," Yuki cut in before Naruto began complaining. "There, I'm done," Yuki said with a satisfied grin as she finished the final touch on her hair. "It would have been much easier with some help though," Yuki added as an afterthought. "So, how do I look?" Yuki asked Naruto.

Naruto turned and took a glance before turning away and began walking out of the bathroom, pulling Yuki along. He was ruffling his hair with his spare hand as he replied, "Looks the same as always," Naruto replied hiding his faint blush from Yuki.

"Well, I wasn't expecting a different answer from you," Yuki said with a pout as they left their hotel room. Making their way down to the gathering place, Naruto was surprised to find that only the males had arrived.

"Where is everyone else?" Naruto asked, clearly surprised.

"They're still getting changed, we've been waiting for the past fifteen minutes," Asuma replied with a sigh as he stared at the shouji board in front of him.

Kakashi was leaning against the wall reading, Gai was besides Kakashi trying to challenge him. Shikamaru was playing Shouji against Asuma, with Chouji next to him eating yet another bag of barbeque chips. Kiba was sitting with Shino on one of the couch talking to Akamaru. Sasuke and Neji were leaning against the walls in their own corner a scowl on their face. Lee was like Gai and was bothering Neji for a challenge.

Hinata, Kurenai and Tenten were next to arrive after Naruto and Yuki. "Now we just have to wait for Sakura and Ino," Kakashi said looking up from his book. Ten minutes after that, Sakura and Ino came running down the halls, completely dressed up.

"Sorry we took so long," Sakura and Ino said with a small huff.

"It's alright, let's go everyone," Kurenai announced loudly.

"Naruto, wake up," Yuki said, shaking Naruto who had dozed off waiting.

"A-are we finally going?" Naruto asked with a yawn, still slightly drowsy from his short nap. Naruto shot up when Yuki flicked him in the forehead. "Hey, why did you do that, Yuki," Naruto whined.

"You looked a little stupid, we're going to an important party you know," Yuki replied with a small giggle.

"Hurry up you two, otherwise we'll leave you," Kakashi said. The two genin quickly ran up behind the group.

"Ohhh, Sakura-chan, Hinata-chan, you guys look nice in that kimono," Naruto praised when he saw them.

"I agree, Sakura-chan!" Lee joined in excitedly.

"Of course," Sakura replied. "Sasuke-kunnn, how do I look?" Sakura asked as she ran up to Sasuke who simply ignored her. Ino had also run up to Sasuke as she began bickering with Sakura.

As for Hinata, she blushed heavily as she stared onto the ground poking her two fingers together nervously. "D-do you really think so, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Of course! I don't lie," Naruto replied with a large grin.

"Pst, Naruto," Kiba whispered quietly as he slowed down next to Naruto. Leaning close, Kiba began whispering quietly so that only Naruto could hear, "Should you really go around saying things like that to other girls when you already have Yuki?"

"What do you mean by that?" Naruto hissed back angrily. "We're not like that," Naruto finished. _**Yet, right**_? Kimimaro's words flashed through Naruto's head as he gritted his teeth angrily.

-

The large group made their way out of the hotel and down the streets towards the party. It took around ten minutes until their arrival. The genin, with the exception of Sasuke, Shino, Neji and Shikamaru all had various degree of awe as they looked around the beautifully decorated hall. There was already numerous guests present, numbering in the hundreds. The group stopped at the registration desk to sign in. Kakashi walked up and showed their invitation paper. After checking it, the man at the desk nodded as he returned the paper to Kakashi. With that, they made their way inside the party.

"Uwahhh, there's so much food," Naruto said excitedly as he stared at the fountain of food with a drool. "Though it would be even better if they had ramen," He added as an afterthought, but nevertheless he began dragging Yuki towards the buffet.

"We should stick with the others, Naruto," Yuki suggested, but it fell on deaf ears. Sighing, Yuki went along with Naruto.

"N-no way, wait for me, Naruto! Yuki!" Chouji exclaimed in surprise when he saw Naruto and Yuki making their way towards the buffet table.

"O-oi, Chouji!" Shikamaru called out, but Chouji ignored him, his sight set on the food at the table. "How troublesome," Shikamaru murmured as he made his way after his friend.

"This is already looking like trouble," Kakashi whispered under his breath as he watches the group beginning to break apart.

"Gai-sensei! Don't you think we should do something to spark the burning youth in this party?" Lee asked as he turned to Gai.

"Of cour-," Gai began but was quickly interrupted.

"Don't even think about it," Kakashi dead panned. Turning towards Neji and Tenten, Kakashi suggested, "I think you two will have to keep an eye on them."

"We will," Tenten replied with a sigh.

With that last parting wisdom, Tenten and Neji quickly followed after Gai and Lee who had separated from the group, stopping the pair of thick eyebrow freaks from disturbing the other people with their rambling nonsense.

Scanning the place, Kakashi decided that it was fine to leave the group as it was now. Turning towards Kurenai and Asuma with a nod, they each went towards a corner of the room, away from the remaining genin.

"Hinata, Shino, let's go after the rest of them, I'm kind of famish myself," Kiba said.

"A-alright," Hinata replied. The pair turned to Shino and received a nod from the silent genin.

Sasuke turned away from the group as he began walking off to his own corner, his usual scowl present on his face. Ino and Sakura stopped their silent glaring contest as they ran after him. "Sasuke-kun, wait for me!" Sakura called out.

"Go away forehead girl, I'll be with Sasuke-kun," Ino said.

"Naruto, calm down, you don't have to stuff your face like that," Yuki said.

"B-bt, tis ish rally gud," Naruto replied with his mouth stuffed full of food.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Yuki dead panned. Yuki face palmed when she realized that Naruto wasn't the only one, Chouji and Kiba were doing the same thing, and it wasn't long before they were attracting the attention of just about every person around them.

Yuki gave up on convincing Naruto to act like a normal person as she looked around the room. The first thing that caught her attention was a tall man with long spiky white hair. He wore bright red clothes that stood out from the other people and strangely enough, he had a forehead protector with the kanji that read "Oil" engraved on it. _That's strange. I didn't think a village hidden in oil existed_. Yuki thought. Her sight lingered a while longer on the man before she cringed in disgust as she fought back a shiver. The man was suddenly surrounded by several men, and they all secretly held an orange book in their hands as they handed it to the older man. It only took Yuki a second to realize what those books were. _Are all men perverts or am I just cursed with meeting this many in life_. Yuki wondered to herself as she quickly looked away from the perverts towards Naruto again. _I hope they aren't…_

"Will you fools show some etiquette, the way you're eating is frankly just disgusting," A snobbish voice said causing the genin to look their way.

In front of the genin stood four boys, the one that appeared to be the leader looked the oldest out of the group. He looked around sixteen, while his followers were around the age of fourteen. _Though I probably won't like him just from the snobbish way he talks, he does have a point_. Yuki found herself agreeing silently as she and the rest of the genin looked at the group.

Yuki found herself in shock when Naruto simply ignored the group and turned back to the table as he continued to wolf down the food. Not arguing back was so uncharacteristic of Naruto that Yuki was speechless. _Maybe Naruto is keeping Kakashi's words at heart_.

"H-hey! Don't ignore me!" The leader said angrily.

"But we don't know you, we don't want to get into trouble," Kiba spoke for the group before he turned back to eating.

"Y-ya, woo ar you?" Naruto asked, food flying out of his mouth, which caused the other group to take a step back to keep their distance.

Yuki's eyebrow twitched uncontrollably as she angrily stomped on Naruto's foot, "I told you to stop talking with your mouth full," Yuki said angrily as Naruto swallowed his food in one huge gulp as he yelped in pain.

"That's dangerous! I could have choked, Yuki!" Naruto whined.

"Maybe that would teach you not to talk with your mouth full, neh?" Yuki retorted, clearly pissed off.

"What! As if I'd be stupid enough to choke while talking with my mouth full, if I do, it'd be because of your heel stomp," Naruto said.

"Hey! Don't ignore me!" The leader exclaimed.

"Shut up!" Naruto and Yuki said to the boy as they continued to glare at each other.

"Oi, oi, Naruto, Yuki, calm down," Kiba said as he tried to defuse the situation.

"What are you two, children?" Shikamaru said with a sigh.

"What family do you people belong to? Never in my life have I seen such unmannered people," The leader said flabbergasted.

"If you really want to know, I'll have you know, my name is Uzumaki Naruto!" Naruto announced proudly.

"U-Uzumaki?" The leader said with surprise evident on his face.

"Co-could he be?" One of the leader's underlings murmured.

"It can't be. Would someone as young as him be sent?" Another one questioned.

"But, I've never heard of another Uzumaki clan."

"Ceh, I'm sorry to have bothered you, Uzumaki-san, I apologized for my earlier words," The leader of the group said as he left.

"Huh?" The genin exclaimed in confusion.

"W-what just happened?" Hinata asked nervously.

"Naruto, did you know the Uzumaki name was that powerful?" Yuki asked, their previous argument completely forgotten.

"N-no... the old man never told me, so I never tried to find anything about it," Naruto replied clearly just as confused as the others.

Their thoughts could no longer linger, as if one revelation wasn't enough, another one was set to happen. "Yuki-chan! I've been searching for you everywhere, ever since that day seven years ago, since your love confession!" A voice yelled out, alerting Naruto and Yuki's group, along with the many guests around them.

"Huh?!" Yuki exclaimed in confusion as she turned to the source of the voice.

-

_Chapter 9 preview: The love that transcends time, yeah right! You're not laying a hand on Yuki, stranger! The climax is set to an explosive start!_

A/N: Argh, this was the most painful and tough chapter to write, simply because while I have everything planned out, this part was simply boring. This chapter is bland, with no actual action except starting more sub-plots that will all connect in due time. The toughest part was my inability to get into the "mood" into writing the story. For some reason, all my imagination ran dry, and I couldn't get the characters to say the right lines. I do believe starting now everything will become far easier, since starting soon it'll start getting to the action. I've also decided to change the rating to T, just in case I accidently have any of the characters swear. It's kind of a problem to write a villain who says "darn it", though I've tried my best to restrict the use of most of these words.

I also do enjoy having characters tease Naruto about his obvious attraction to Yuki which he vehemently denies. The reason I see it is this, Naruto is still young, and he hasn't really received "love" from many people. It is natural for someone who hasn't received this to be unaware of it himself. The romance is there and Naruto will realize it. I would call him dense, but at the same time, I think he just doesn't know what he is feeling himself. I don't like extending this whole "I don't really like her" thing for too long myself.

By the way, just who is this mysterious white hair pervert?! Also, I cannot write spoiled "rich" characters right and just why are they so afraid of the "Uzumaki" name? Has Naruto's love rival arrived at last? Till next time and yet again I apologize for this extreme lateness, the next chapter will be out this weekend before finals kicks in.


	9. Who are you?

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: Did you expect something else? :D. Also, **ChaosStrife**, you're welcome to use the plot if you like, I'm interested to read someone else's take on the story, seeing as I'm horrible at keeping on schedule, plus it's always fun.

**Double Arts**

Chapter 9: Who are you?

"_Yuki-chan! I've been searching for you everywhere, ever since that day seven years ago, since your love confession!_" Naruto was petrified, his mouth gaping in shock as those words repeated in his head. He wasn't looking at the source of the voice, too surprised to even turn his head. He could see Kiba staring at him with a sly knowing grin, which quickly broke Naruto out of his shock. "What's with that look?" Naruto yelled angrily at Kiba who merely broke out into laughter.

"Man you should see that look on your face," Kiba managed to say in between his laughter, as he mimicked Naruto's shocked expression.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto ignored Kiba's mocking as he quickly turned to the source of the voice. It was a young man who was probably two or three years old than him. He had nicely kept black hair and a gentle and kind smile on his face. From the state of his dress, Naruto could tell he was someone with some authority. "Y-yuki, do you know that guy?" Naruto whispered into Yuki's ears.

Yuki had a thoughtful look on her face, as she tried to recall the face of the young man in front of her, "No, I think he mistook me for someone else," Yuki replied with a sweat drop. They were attracting a lot of attention from the other guest.

"Yuki-chan, I've been searching for you for a long time. When I returned to the village we separated seven years ago, the villagers said you and your family had moved away," the young man started as he began walking up to Yuki. "After that, I had men sent out to search far and wide for you, but I couldn't find your whereabouts. I can see why they had so much trouble, you've changed the color of your hair," The young man continued. "Even I barely recognized you, but when I saw you earlier, your fiery personality hasn't changed one bit," the young man finished with a smile as he stood before Yuki. "Do you remember me, Yuki-chan?"

_I don't!_ Yuki yelled in her head as she tried to recall who the young man was. _But, besides Naruto, there aren't many people who know that I wasn't born with white hair, so, he isn't lying_. Yuki continued her thoughts as she studied the young man. He was the opposite of Naruto; a gentleman as opposed to the wild and often immature Naruto. _Though, he probably isn't lying, his words are far from the truth, since I have never fallen in love with anyone else besides this blonde moron_. _Especially not when I was only six, I'd remember something like that from that year of my life_. "I'm sorry, but... who are you?" Yuki asked bluntly.

This time, it was the young man's turn to become petrified, as he gaped at Yuki. "I-i-it's me, Hideyoshi!" The young man yelled as he got over his shock, tears welling up in his eyes.

_W-what? He's going to start crying_? Yuki thought with surprised. _This guy is definitely the complete opposite of Naruto, he's a cry baby... wait, cry baby_? Yuki suddenly remembered who the crying young man in front of her was.

"Y-yuki, say something to shut him up, he's attracting a lot of attention," Naruto whispered with a sweat drop. He felt stupid for even worrying over an idiot like that.

"Acha," Yuki murmured with a sigh as she held her face with the palm of her hand. "I hate to say it, but I think I know who he is," Yuki whispered to Naruto.

"S-so he was telling the truth?!" Naruto exclaimed with surprised.

"Well..., most of it," Yuki replied.

-

_Flashback_

_It was seven years ago, when Yuki and her mother were still healthy. The mother and daughter pair was on the road to a new village shortly after Yuki's father had passed away. The pair had stopped at a small village to rest for the day. This was the day Yuki and Hideyoshi met. At this point in time, though Yuki had no knowledge, her mother's health was slowly deteriorating. In hopes of her daughter's safety, she had increased the level of Yuki's training. This was the day, Yuki was taught the basic of water walking. Out in a clearing, a distance from the village, Yuki was glaring at a small lake. She was soaked from head to toe after falling into the lake numerous times. With a frustrated growl, the young girl ran at the lake, falling in before she even managed one step. Yuki's mother was currently out on an errand in the village, so she had left her daughter to train. Getting out of the water, Yuki made her way out into the middle of the clearing as she dropped onto her back. She was tired after an hour of water walking. Staring up into the clear blue sky, Yuki stared at the slow moving clouds. When Yuki heard several voices coming from the bushes, the curious young girl quickly got up to take a look. Peeking out from behind a tree, Yuki could see three grown men, and one of them was carrying a young crying boy over his shoulder. The three grown men were bandits, the young girl determined quickly, remembering her mother's words._

"_If this damn brat wasn't worth so much, I'd kill him for being so annoying," one of the men said with a grunt, as he flexed his hands over the hilt of his sword. He was the man carrying the crying boy._

"_This is the feudal lord's youngest son, if we do this properly, we'll make a fortune, just bear with this for now." Another one of the bandits said as he tried to calm the other._

"_Indeed, what we managed to do today is something that only happens once in a million years," the last bandit began. "It isn't everyday that the young son of feudal lord Hidemoto manages to get separated from his personal guards."_

_So, they kidnapped him. Yuki thought as she listened in on the bandit's conversation. Yuki was carefully stalking the group as she studied the three bandits, trying to determine each of their respective strengths. When she decided that they were relatively harmless as far as their strength goes, Yuki jumped out of hiding and in front of the three bandits._

_Her sudden appearance surprised the bandits, but they quickly calmed down when they saw the young girl."What are you doing here all alone, little girl?" One of the bandits asked._

_Yuki remained silent and combined with her relatively harmless appearance, the bandits had let their guards down completely. When a quick punch came from the young girl, the bandit holding the boy collapsed onto his knees, clutching his stomach with both hands and dropping their hostage. "W-what?" The other two bandits exclaimed in surprise._

"_G-grah!" The bandit groaned._

"_Y-you!" The other two bandits growled in anger as they tried to grab Yuki._

_The young boy who was crying watched in awe and soon admiration when the young girl quickly knocked out the two bandits. She was extremely graceful and agile, at least compared to the inexperienced bandits. Running circles around the bandits and knocking them out with well placed punches and kicks. When the girl was done, she was staring at her own hands with surprise. "I've always been losing against okaa-san, but, I guess I'm pretty strong," the young girl murmured. Turning to the boy, Yuki sweat drops as he continued to cry loudly. "Hey, you're already safe, so would you stop crying?" Yuki said with a sigh._

"_B-b-but! Nii-san! Otou-san!" The young boy cried out._

"_They're dead?" Yuki asked bluntly._

"_N-no! Why would you even think that!?" The boy yelled out as he sniffed his nose, rubbing his tears with the sleeves of his shirt._

"_Well, you make it sound as if you won't ever see them again," Yuki replied as she crouched in front of the boy to stare him straight in his eyes. "You look older than me, so why don't you act a little tougher. You're a man, aren't you?" Yuki encouraged with a smile._

_The young boy stared at the girl in front of him, with a small blush on his face as he nodded timidly. "I-i'll try my best," the boy replied as he sniffled his tears._

"_Alright, I think we should get out of here before they wake up," Yuki suggested. "Do you know where the bandits took you from?"_

"_They took me from a village an hour away from here," the boy replied._

"_I think I can make it back in time," Yuki said thoughtfully, "alright, I'll escort you there!"_

"_R-really?" The boy asked._

"_Of course," Yuki replied with a grin, "let's go!"_

_With that, Yuki went with the young boy to escort him back to his village. Half an hour later, the pair had made a lot of progress, as they walked along a dirt path. In the distance they could see six armed men rapidly approaching. Yuki quickly stood protectively in front of the weaker boy, getting ready to fight. She lowered her guard though, when the six men began yelling, "Young master, we finally found you!" They yelled._

_The six men ran by Yuki as they surrounded the boy, they all had comedic tears streaming down their eyes. "Do you know them?" Yuki asked._

"_Yeah, these are my personal guards," the boy replied with a smile._

"_Young lady, were you the one who saved our master from the hands of those fiends?" One of the guards asked. They had set out to look for their young master after receiving the letter of his abduction._

"_Yes she did. She is incredible," the boy praised excitedly._

"_Is that so? Is there anything you wish for, young lady? You have done the Tetsuya house a great deed, and for that, I am sure Hidemoto-sama would be willing to reward you anything within his powers," The guard explained._

"_It's alright, I didn't help because I wanted a reward in the first place," Yuki replied with a grin, "now that he is in good hands, I should quickly return before my mother gets worried," Yuki explained._

"_Thank you for everything you have done, young lady, the Tetsuya house is forever in your debt," The six guards said as the bowed respectfully towards Yuki who had a blush as she scratched her cheek in embarrassment._

"_R-really, it was nothing, you really don't have to do all that," Yuki said modestly as she tried to get the six guards to stop bowing. With a wave, Yuki bid her farewell as she turned and began walking away. She paused in her steps when the boy called out for her._

"_W-wait!" The boy yelled. "What's your name?"_

"_Me? I'm Yuki, Hikari Yuki," Yuki replied._

"_I'm Hideyoshi, Tetsuya Hideyoshi! Yuki-chan, the next time we meet, I promise I'll be stronger, I won't cry anymore, I'll be a man worthy of you," Hideyoshi yelled out._

"_O-ohh, young master, could it be...," the guards yelled excitedly in unison._

"_I really like you Yuki-chan, so let's meet again!" Hideyoshi finished as his face turned red with embarrassment._

"_Young master... you've grown so much," the guards all announced happily as comedic tears poured out of their eyes._

_Yuki looked confused but replied, "Sure! I like you too." _

_Hideyoshi looked surprised. He was frozen in shock at Yuki's words. "Yuki-chan... we'll meet again for sure," Hideyoshi promised himself as he watch Yuki walk away._

_-_

"What! You actually did say something like that, Yuki-chan!" Kiba yelled out after Yuki's story.

Naruto, Kiba, Hinata, Chouji, Shikamaru and Shino had gathered in a circle around Yuki as she recalled her past meeting with the young man called Hideyoshi. "Well, so maybe I did, but I didn't mean for it to be a love confession, I was only six, you know!" Yuki defended herself. "I thought he meant that as a friend. In the past, he was kind and a little wimpy, there wasn't any reason why I'd hate him," Yuki explained. The group of genin turned to look at the sniffling young man with a sweat drop.

"Didn't he promise you that he'd be a man the next time you meet? As far as I can tell, nothing has changed," Kiba whispered.

"Well, he is the son of Tetsuya Hidemoto, that'd make him the son of a lord," Shikamaru explained logically. "Being a son of a lord, that'd probably make him pretty spoiled, he probably always got everything he ever wanted."

"What is your reply to his confession now, Yuki-san?" Shino asked in a monotone voice.

"I don't hate him, but neither do I like him in that way," Yuki replied honestly, "that won't change now, nor would it change in the future," Yuki finished.

"I see," Shino replied with a nod.

"This is why love is such a troublesome thing, neh, Shikamaru," Chouji said as he stole his best friend's favourite line.

"I wouldn't know," Shikamaru said with a shrug.

It was at their words that Hinata stole a glance towards Naruto who looked deep in thought, before her eyes shifted over to Yuki. In her heart, Hinata understood Yuki's resolve and the reason why she had said those things. "I think that Tetsuya-san has the right to know your feelings, Yuki-chan, he deserves to have an answer, no?" Hinata spoke up.

Releasing a deep breath, Yuki nodded, "You're right, Hinata. Instead of allowing this to get out of hand, I should put an end to it right now," Yuki said with a grateful smile. "Thank you."

Hinata nodded back with a kind smile. Yuki glanced at Naruto as he turned to her. Naruto said no words, but gave her an encouraging smile, and it was enough for Yuki to get the message that he'd support her all the way.

Walking over towards Hideyoshi, Yuki began, "Hideyoshi-san...-?" Yuki was surprised when Hideyoshi suddenly grabbed her hand, with a childish smile on his face.

"So you finally remember me, Yuki-chan!" Hideyoshi said happily. Without letting Yuki speak, Hideyoshi began dragging Yuki and along with her, Naruto. "Yuki-chan, I've always wanted to introduce you to nii-sama," he explained.

"H-hey, wait!" Yuki and Naruto yelled as they tried to stop Hideyoshi, but they both failed miserably.

"Well, I hope they get everything resolved," Kiba murmured as he turned back to the food.

"Agreed."

-

When the trio arrived at the backroom, Yuki and Naruto looked around with awe and surprise. The room was heavily decorated. "Umm, excuse me, but who are you?" Hideyoshi asked as he finally noticed Naruto behind Yuki. "Only authorized members are allowed to enter," Hideyoshi added. Surprisingly, he had yet to notice the pair's holding hands.

_This guy is so slow_. Yuki and Naruto thought in unison. Words fail to describe their current thoughts. "You're the one who dragged me in here, you know?" Naruto said with a sigh.

Hideyoshi looked confused until he noticed Naruto and Yuki's hands. "Y-you! What are you doing holding Yuki-chan's hand?!" Hideyoshi yelled with surprise.

"What are you getting so worked up for? You're the one holding her hand without permission, you know?" Naruto replied calmly, restraining himself from insulting Hideyoshi.

"For what reason are you causing such a commotion, Hideyoshi?" A calm and yet powerful voice asked.

The trio turned towards the source of the voice and spots a man. He was very handsome and he held himself with an aura of confidence. He looked like Hideyoshi, but far more mature. "Nii-sama!" Hideyoshi greeted excitedly, forgetting his argument with Naruto for the moment as he ran up to his brother.

Naruto, wanting no part in all the mess, unless Yuki asks, simply turned away from them as he observed his surroundings.

"Y-yuki-sama?" A group of voices exclaimed as six men came running. "Ohh, it is indeed you, Yuki-sama!" The group of men announced excitedly. "No wonder we could not find you all these years, to think that you had changed the color of your hair. Yet, after seeing you up close again, it is impossible not to recognize you. Your eyes haven't changed one bit, still as kind and confident as it once was."

"So this is the girl you've wanted to find all these years," Hideyoshi's brother began as he observed and studied Yuki with his piercing dark eyes. Yuki stared back with unwavering confidence. Hideyoshi's brother seemed pleased as his eyes turned to Naruto, and then the pair's hands. "Ah, I see, Uzumaki Naruto and Hikari Yuki, so you two are the famous duo who saved Nami no Kuni."

Naruto turned back quickly when he heard his name, as he and Yuki stared at Hideyoshi's brother with surprise. "Hmm, you appear surprised," Hideyoshi's brother said with a kind smile. "Did you think your heroic deeds won't go acknowledge? The newly revived Nami no Kuni has recently become a valuable trade post. It has been singing praises of you and your team's exploit, so it is only natural it would arrive into the ears of the people of this country," Hideyoshi's brother explained.

"T-they are?" the pair asked with uncertainty.

"What I speak of is nothing but the truth," Hideyoshi's brother reconfirmed. "Ah, least I forget, allow me to introduce myself, I am Tetsuya Sakamoto. It is my pleasure to meet the two of you, creators of Double Arts."

_Sakamoto?! He's feudal lord Sakamoto_? Naruto and Yuki thought with surprise. "I-it's nice to meet you too, sir!" Naruto and Yuki quickly replied with a bow.

Sakamoto waved his hands, "Please, call me Sakamoto, I do not care at all for formalities," Sakamoto said.

"Nii-sama, you know who that boy is?" Hideyoshi asked from behind Sakamoto.

"Indeed I do, I have heard much from my acquaintance, someone you both should know very well," Sakamoto replied as he turned to the pair.

"Someone we know?" Naruto and Yuki repeated as they turned towards each other in confusion.

"Sarutobi Hiruzen-dono, you might know him as Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure," Sakamoto answered with a smile.

"The old man?" Naruto exclaimed with surprise. "Why?"

"You see, a week and a half from now, a certain event is set to happen in Konohagakure," Sakamoto began. "The chunin exam, and as the name states, it is a test for genin of villages around the elemental countries. The chunin exam is a series of exams and trials each team from every village must face and conquer. Each of these teams must be composed of three members. Do you see the problem now?" Sakamoto continued.

Naruto and Yuki realized what Sakamoto was saying as with the addition of Yuki, team 7 had four members. "Indeed, I have heard of your situation from Sarutobi-dono. He had requested me to use my connections to convince the leaders of the other countries to make an exception regarding two genin, Uzumaki Naruto and Hikari Yuki. Two genin, who, due to special circumstances cannot separate from one another," Sakamoto finished.

"W-what! They can't separate from each other?" Hideyoshi exclaimed in shock.

"To think that Hokage-sama was doing so much for us," Yuki murmured.

"That old man has always been like that," Naruto said with a small smile.

"After hearing stories of your skills and deeds, I agreed to help out. Allow me to wish you luck on your exam," Sakamoto said.

"T-thank you for helping us!" Naruto and Yuki bowed gratefully.

"Alright, why don't we go enjoy the rest of the party," Sakamoto suggested.

"Yes!" Naruto and Yuki replied with a smile.

-

When Naruto and Yuki left the backroom with Sakamoto and a sniffling Hideyoshi, they saw Hinata and Kiba standing nearby. "Hinata-chan, Kiba," Naruto said as he waved to the pair.

"Ohh, Naruto!" Kiba said as he and Hinata ran up to the group.

When the group met up they huddled into a circle. "So, how did the situation go, did you tell Hideyoshi?" Kiba asked.

"Tell him what?" Yuki and Naruto asked in confusion.

"Y-you guys forgot?" Kiba exclaimed with surprise.

Staring at each other, Naruto and Yuki had a sweat drop. _We're idiots_. The pair thought.

The group of four broke out of their huddle when suddenly an explosion rocked the grounds they stood upon. They quickly turned towards the source of the explosion as crowds of guests began running away from the crumbled wall. From the dust of the explosion, a group of silhouette could be seen. When it settled a giant man walked forth, he was a muscular man, with silvery white hair. The most distinctive feature was a cross shaped scar that spanned across his forehead and both his eyes. There was a forehead protector wrapped around his waist, with a crossed off mark of the hidden village of stone. Kakashi was instantly able to recognize the man as he exclaimed, "Taisho, the Crimson Fist."

Kakashi quickly reacted as he charged towards Taisho, in hopes of intercepting him before he could move. Sensing danger, Kakashi shifted to his right, as he diverted an income fist with his forearm. "Copy-nin Kakashi, it's a pleasure to meet you," a man with blue hair greeted calmly.

-

Soon, the rest of the team found themselves in similar situation as they were intercepted by one of the many shinobi under Taisho's command. Gai was staring face to face with another jounin and his eyes shifted worriedly towards his team, who was facing a jounin of their own.

-

Asuma and Kurenai stood back to back as two jounin stood in front of each of them. They were escorting the guests to safety when they were attacked.

-

Shikamaru, Chouji and Shino found themselves facing a jounin. They had quickly went to help escort the guests when the explosion had occurred, yet, somehow, the jounin had quickly pin pointed their location and attacked. If it wasn't for Shino's quick save, Chouji would have already been taken out by an ambushed from behind.

-

Sasuke had a smirk on his face as he stood in front of a jounin, Sharingan already activated. Sakura and Ino were standing behind him. Sakura was able to calm herself and take a fighting stance, but Ino, who was inexperienced in an actual fight found herself struggling to stop shaking from fear.

-

Amidst the chaos that was happening around him, Taisho took a slow steady walk towards his target, Tetsuya Sakamoto. Naruto, Yuki, Kiba and Hinata stood protectively in front of the Tetsuya brothers. They had seen the entrance of the group, and they understood that the man making his way towards them was the leader.

"Sakamoto-san, Hideyoshi-san, please stay close to us, we'll protect you with our lives," the four genin announced.

-

Kakashi parried a jab from a kunai with the metal plate on the back of his gloves as he took a look at Taisho's position. His forehead protector was already pulled up, revealing the sharingan. _This is bad, there is no way those four can fight an S-rank missing-nin at their current level_.Kakashi thought as he took a look around for the other teams. He was surprised to find that they had already all engaged in battle. _I-impossible! How did they pin point all of our location so quickly_? Kakashi was broken out of his thoughts when he narrowly dodged a kunai.

"It isn't good to look away from a fight, Copy-nin, Kakashi," Kakashi's opponent advised.

_Naruto, Yuki, Kiba and Hinata, please hold on, and don't die!_

-

_Chapter 10 preview: The situation continues to escalate. Double Arts, defeated in an instant! You remind me of that man... boy!_

A/N: This chapter focuses solely on the characters. Also adding more layers to Yuki's past. As she is the OC of the story, I tend to focus on developing her character, but soon, it'll be Naruto's turn. I intend to develop all these OC to some extend that won't distract from the main cast, of course. The next chapter will wrap up the fight, with a twist! The whole purpose of this arc was to introduce Taisho and to introduce Sakamoto so there is a reasonable way for Naruto and Yuki to enter the chunin exam. Also, I'm pretty sure you all have already guessed just who that man is, no? :D

Naruto has matured! Did anyone actually expect him to lash out or attack the poor guy? Until next time, here's a mini-series I had planned from the start, I might just add it onto the end of each chapter.

-

**Please teach us, Zabuza-sensei!**

Chapter 1: First Impressions

It was the morning a day after Naruto and Yuki had left the village. Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro were left in charge of watching the apartment. Today also marked the day that Zabuza and Haku were to begin their character assessment assignment, which so happens to be a teacher at the academy.

A sane person would question, why in the world would anyone with a shred of logic put a man who once slaughtered a hundred children (as a kid) to watch over more children? The answer is simple, that said person (Naruto) was anything but.

Waking up in the morning (roughly awaken), Zabuza groaned from his position on the floor. He was not a morning person. Haku had thrown him out of his own bed, as a means to wake him up. "Wake up! We have to get to the academy soon!" Haku said excitedly, overjoyed at her assignment.

"Just go without me," Zabuza murmured from the floor, as he pulled the blanket over his head. He instantly shot awake when various senbon needles pierced the wooden boards around his body, inches from piercing him. "I'm awake, I'm awake!" Zabuza yelled out.

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, Zabuza groggily made his way to the kitchen. Kimimaro was already awake. He had a cup of ramen out in front of him. "You'll get sick eating that trash every day," Zabuza said though he kept his mouth clamped shut afterwards when a bullet flew by his head. _Who in the right mind would want me to teach any children? The two that I looked after are violent ungrateful psychotic brats_. Zabuza thought. Eating a plate of badly burned food (he had gotten used to it after so many years), Zabuza was ready to go. He and Haku stood at the door, though Haku was staring back at him, tapping her foot. "What? Weren't you excited to go?" Zabuza asked. Noticing Haku's stare, Zabuza began to sweat fiercely, "N-no, you can't!" Zabuza whined.

After several more close-calls with senbon needles, Zabuza unwillingly placed Kubikiri Honcho against the wall. Indeed, there was no way Haku would let him bring his precious weapon to an academy full of "annoying brats" (as Zabuza would soon deem). Zabuza turned towards Kimimaro who stood behind the pair, waiting for them to leave. "W-why do you look like you're coming along?" Zabuza asked warily.

"That's because I am, there is no way I'm missing out on this," Kimimaro replied monotonously. "This will sure to be very interesting."

"You damn brat," Zabuza muttered with a scowl.

-

"Everybody, today I'll be introducing you to your new teacher, this is Momochi Zabuza," Iruka began from his position at the front of the class. He was facing a large class of students around the age of nine years old. "And this is-," Iruka continued as he turned towards Haku who stepped forward with a large smile.

"My name is Momochi Haku, I'm the assistant," Haku greeted.

The class gave a loud welcome to the duo. "So, do you guys have any questions for your new sensei?" Iruka asked.

"Sensei, did you cut it off or were you born without eyebrows?" A young boy asked. He was wearing a long blue scarf around his neck and a pair of green goggles around his forehead.

"Konohamaru! What kind of question was that!" Iruka yelled out angrily as the rest of the class laughed.

With laughter, another student asked, "Sensei, why do you wear bandages around your mouth? Do you have fish lips?"

"Why aren't you wearing a chunin jacket? Are you just a genin?" Another asked.

"What about your forehead protector? Are you sure he isn't going to be a student like us?"

Zabuza stood at the front of the class, veins visibly throbbing as the class continued to throw out questions at him. His hands were reaching for the invisible hilt of his Kubikiri Honcho. Haku's soft giggling from behind him weren't helping calm his mood one bit. _I-I really hate them_. Zabuza thought with a scowl.

"All of you, stop asking such stupid questions!" Iruka yelled out.

A lone girl sat at the top row of the room, staring out the window with a serious look. She had pale eyes with no pupil, the signature features of the Hyuuga clan. "How stupid," She murmured silently and with displeasure as the rest of her idiotic class continued to make fun of Zabuza.

-

"How amusing," Kimimaro said as he sat on the tree branch outside the classroom. He was enjoying Zabuza's torment, as he watched from the distance. Kimimaro could feel several eyes on him, though he ignored it. It was only natural that the village kept eyes on them, even if Naruto, Yuki and Kakashi were vouching for them. Instead, Kimimaro sat back and continued to enjoy the show.

-

A/N: These chapters won't be long at all, just chronicling random moments of Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro's life as they settle in. Though, that doesn't mean I won't throw in canon characters and try to add at least some plot in this story.


	10. Absolute defeat

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: I realize some people seem to dislike the fact that I make Naruto overly dense/stupid/etc. Trust me, I don't like it all that much myself. But, that doesn't mean I would suddenly make him smart, that'd just be horrible character development because this isn't how I characterized Naruto's character from the beginning. I won't forsake all that at a sudden whim. That said, I do prefer a smarter and stronger Naruto in general :D.

As for the chapter, this is more of an experimental chapter. This is probably the first time I have tried to focus on the actual action to this extend, forsaking quite a lot of dialogue, though, honestly, in a battle such as this, there is hardly time for talking. I should mention I suck at naming characters too.

Edit: Hahaha, you're right ChaosStrife, it was toads after all. I had always thought it was frog cause Fukasaku was teaching Naruto 'frog' kata. The edit has been done!

**Double Arts**

Chapter 10: Absolute Defeat

Kakashi and his blue haired opponent clashed kunai to kunai before they leapt apart. Observing his opponent carefully, Kakashi remarked "I've heard rumours of a blue haired master swordsman working under Taisho, the Crimson Fist, who was once a proud member of the legendary weapon smith family. You are Shinri Kentamaru."

"You are very well informed, copy-nin, Hakate Kakashi," Kentamaru replied calmly.

_In that case, he is still holding back. It is said that the Shinri family discovered the 'secret of steel', and each member wields a special weapon crafted by their own hands as a rite of passage. Incredible weapons on par with the blades of the seven mist swordsman._

-

Gai and his opponent were locked in a furious exchange of lightning quick blows. The pair was currently squaring off equally, with neither gaining an upper hand on the other. "Maito Gai, your skills precedes you, self proclaimed, 'Konoha's Noble Green Beast'," Gai's opponent said as he and Gai broke away from each other.

"You as well, Iseki Akira. You are a notorious A-rank missing-nin whose reputation is not any less than your leader, Taisho the Crimson Fist," Gai replied seriously. Taking this pause in the battle, Gai took a look to see how his team was faring in their battle. When he saw Lee and Neji's pushing back their opponent, Gai smirked proudly. "Osu, I will follow in my team's burning example of youth," Gai announced as he charged dead straight at Akira.

-

Forming several seals, Kurenai murmured, "**Magen: Jubaku Satsu**," with that she disappeared from sight. While approaching her opponent masked with her 'illusion', Kurenai was surprised when a shuriken flew by in front of her face. Turning towards the source, Kurenai's opponent had a smirk on his face. "Yuhi Kurenai, the genjutsu prodigy of Konoha. While we were scouting Konoha's back up team, we were quickly able to identify you," her opponent began cockily. "For that, I was sent to deal with you," He continued as he formed several seals and disappeared in front of Kurenai's eyes.

"A genjutsu user…," Kurenai murmured as she held her hands in a ram seal.

-

Asuma was calmly trading blows with his opponent, though deep inside, he was filled with worries for the rest of the genin. Glancing at Shikamaru, Chouji and Shino's battle, Asuma was relieved that they were holding their own. His biggest worry was the looming danger that was Taisho, as he continued his walk towards Naruto's group.

"Oi, should you really be looking away in a battle," Asuma's opponent taunted as he struck.

-

"Shino, Chouji, can you help me distract him?" Shikamaru whispered from behind his two fellow genin. "If I can connect with my **Kagemane**, Shino can use his Kikaichu to drain all his chakra," Shikamaru explained the plan quickly.

Shino nodded in reply as he and Chouji got into a fighting stance in front of Shikamaru. "We'll hold him off until you succeed, Shikamaru!" Chouji said bravely.

Their opponent looked at them with a malicious grin, licking his lips in anticipation of killing the three genin. He was so overconfident in his superiority, he was underestimating all potential threat the three genin could possibly impose.

-

Sasuke hated to admit it, but he knew he wasn't at a level where he could face off against a jounin, be it that the jounin was elite or trash. So as annoying as Sakura was most of the time, her assistance was evening out the battle against the low class jounin.

With Sasuke engaging the jounin in a furious battle of taijutsu, Sakura was consistently staying out of the jounin's range, attacking with punches and kicks of her own when the time called for it. That is to say, she was interrupting the battle whenever their opponent was gaining an upper hand against Sasuke. Sakura had trained hard during the one month stay at Nami no Kuni after the fight on the bridge. She was disappointed in herself for failing to do anything against Haku, which had propelled her head first into training.

For one month, Sakura sparred with Kakashi's shadow clones daily for taijutsu training. Besides that, Sakura also trained with Naruto and Yuki. From those two, Sakura learned the basic of teamwork and refined her chakra imbuing techniques. Sakura knew she wasn't as strong as Sasuke, Naruto and Yuki, therefore she learned to support them in her own way. Taking the concept of Naruto and Yuki's Double Arts style, Sakura learned to disrupt the flow of battle. By using well timed hit and run techniques, Sakura was essentially restarting the battle by disrupting the pace of Sasuke's opponent whenever he started gaining advantage in the battle. This current tactic was proving successful, as the pair of genin fought off the jounin.

Ino could only look on with awe and a growing respect for Sakura who had grown so much in the past month. The ongoing battle also made Ino come to realize her inability to do anything. It revealed to her that she needed to work harder as a Kunoichi. Sakura's improvement and success in the current battle was the testament of her hard work and effort.

-

"T-this is... I can't do anything!" Tenten exclaimed as she stood a distance away from where Lee and Neji were pushing back their opponent. The two were attacking fiercely, working with perfect compatibility as they stuck close to their opponent, never allowing him to escape their relentless blows. With the two taijutsu experts attacking him, Team Gai's opponent was unable to create any distance. As a jounin that specialized in ninjutsu, he was struggling to fight back against the two agile genin.

-

Narut and Yuki could feel the intense killing intent sipping out of their opponent. Even with their experience in a life or death battle against Zabuza and Kimimaro, they knew the man walking towards them was on another level. Naruto glanced back at Hinata and Kiba behind him, he could notice them shaking. Though that is to be expected, after all, neither of them had experience in fighting a high level missing-nin. Naruto wanted to encourage them, but, all it would be would be false hope.

Taisho made no sound as he attacked, charging straight towards the four genin. Naruto and Yuki, who were standing at the front of the defensive line, were barely able to react in time as they held out their arms to block. The pair was instantly engulfed in a white aura as Yuki activated **Yuukai**. Even with their strength doubled, the pair was instantly overpowered as they were sent flying back, crashing into the tables set up around the hall.

Seeing Naruto and Yuki sent flying broke Kiba and Hinata out of their fear as they attacked Taisho together. Naruto and Yuki quickly regained their bearings as they got back up onto their feet. They had suffered less damage than it would have appeared by reducing the full force of the attack by jumping backwards. Though, they had misjudged the power and their own jump, crashing into the tables. **Yuukai** was deactivated the second they had been sent flying. In the month of training in Nami no Kuni, their mastery over the use of **Yuukai** had drastically improved, allowing the pair to use it in short bursts without recoil. When Naruto and Yuki had picked themselves off their feet, they saw Kiba and Hinata sent flying by a powerful palm thrust by Taisho.

With all of the genin gone, Taisho made his way towards Sakamoto as his giant figure loomed over the much smaller stature of Sakamoto and Hideyoshi, who was crying and hiding behind his older brother. "I apologize for the late greetings feudal lord Sakamoto, I've come to wish you a happy birthday," Taisho taunted mockingly.

Sakamoto stood unfazed in Taisho's presence, even when Taisho's hand drew near, ready to end his life in an instant. Taisho's hand never reached its goal as it was kicked away, a brief look of surprised appeared on Taisho's face. Naruto and Yuki stood in front of Sakamoto and Hideyoshi, surrounded by a white glow. "You won't lay a hand on either of them," they yelled in unison as they glared at Taisho.

-

_No! That's bad, Naruto, Yuki! You're being drawn into his game_. Kakashi thought as he parried a kunai thrust from Kentamaru. _That man is not an ordinary shinobi. He is the worst possible opponent you could face, a man who won't fall for any of your deceptions. He is a blind man who has mastered all his remaining senses to its limits. Once an extraordinary gifted chakra sensor, it is said he developed the ability to 'see' with his chakra after he became blind. There is no way he wouldn't have sensed your approach. He is toying with you guys!_ Kakashi thought grimly, trying his best to shrug off Kentamaru and to his team's aid.

-

"You two have a pretty interesting technique," Taisho began, "I have met many people in my life, but this is the first time I have ever felt two people meshing their presence so perfectly before," Taisho continued. "Not to mention, for two genin to have the courage to face me, that alone is worthy of praise."

"Don't be so full of yourself, we've faced shinobi far stronger than you," Naruto retorted.

"You... your presence makes the scar I received from that man hurt, yes... it reminds me of that golden bastard, the man I despise with every fibre of my being...!" Taisho murmured softly as he gripped the large X-scar on his face.

Ignoring the man's rambling and taking advantage of this distraction, Naruto and Yuki attacked, unleashing a flurry of punches and kicks. When all the blows were easily avoided and blocked, they knew they were in trouble. Although, it wasn't as if nothing came from their attack, as they managed to push Taisho away from the Tetsuya brothers.

The instant the attacks stopped, Taisho retaliated. Naruto and Yuki were able to see the attack coming as they leapt back to create some distance. "Too slow," Taisho said as he appeared from behind the pair.

With a grunt, Naruto began pivoting on the sole of his feet, as he forcefully stopped the pair's backward momentum, spinning Yuki away from the incoming blow for a counterattack.

Working with perfect unison with Naruto, Yuki had already begun to gather chakra into her leg, ready to attack Taisho. Her eyes widened in surprised when she noticed that Taisho had already moved. Feeling her surrounding, Yuki instinctively reacted, pushing on Naruto's shoulder as she spun around and kicked, narrowly diverting Taisho's incoming fist. The resulting clash sent a shock up Yuki's leg as she landed.

"Interesting manoeuvre, this is the first time I have ever seen two people fighting that well while holding hands," Taisho remarked.

Naruto and Yuki ignored him as they dropped Yuukai. The reason was not the fact that they could not hold it any longer, but the fact that the current battle wasn't one where they could risk getting knocked out by their own technique. With their training, the longest they could hold a single **Yuukai** was two minutes and thirty seconds. With their mastery over the technique, they could hold it for half that time without any drawbacks. But in a battle and without rest, each time they used **Yuukai**, the time without drawback shortens, risking a chance of going overtime and getting disorientated.

With no words, but two simple squeeze of his hand, Naruto conveyed his message to Yuki. Knowing that they had no chance of beating Taisho, Naruto and Yuki decided then and there to stall for as long as possible. Yuki and Naruto ripped open a bit of their kimono as they criss-crossed their legs. Letting go of Yuki's hand for a moment, Naruto formed a familiar cross hand seal. "**Kage Bunshin no jutsu**!" He yelled as clones flooded the hall around them. They had deduced their opponent's blindness long ago, therefore deciding that they had no need to do the required **Henge**.

Taisho appeared mildly impressed at the amount of clones that spawned, though not a trace of worry could be seen. With a battle cry, the clones charged at Taisho. It was soon evident that the clones stood no chance as Taisho destroyed them with relative ease.

Naruto and Yuki had carefully assimilated into the mass of clones, mixing in and patiently waiting for an opening to appear. Neither of them predicted the ease in which Taisho pinpointed their location as he charges his way through the clones, a trail of smoke behind him as the clones were destroyed. Narrowly avoiding Taisho's shoulder slam, Naruto and Yuki retaliated. Punches and kicks simply bounced off Taisho's muscular body, dealing absolutely no damage. In fact, it was Naruto and Yuki's own arms and legs that suffered more from the short exchange, shaking uncontrollably as if they were hitting steel.

"Is this the best you two can do?" Taisho asked with a bored expression. Naruto and Yuki's eyes widened when an intense wave of bottled up killing intent washed over them. Quickly moving away to create distance, they were far too slow as Taisho was already behind them, waiting for the pair to arrive. Activating **Yuukai** instantly, they changed direction, but even with the boosted speed, they were unable to shrug off Taisho. "Your greatest weakness is your inability to move in anyway but in a straight line, to someone like me who fights with heightened senses. Your movement is no different than a telegraph. Every time the two of you move, I can already predict where you will be before you arrive, even if you can move at a greater speed, I can easily intercept your path," Taisho explained calmly while Naruto and Yuki circled around him.

Naruto and Yuki had no chance to react when Taisho appeared in front of their path. He had gotten close enough that he had two open palm held out in front of the two genin. "T-this move is?!" Naruto exclaimed as he remembered the same technique that took down Kiba and Hinata earlier. Neither he nor Yuki had the chance to dodge when the attack connected. The resulting blow was so devastating that it felt like a cannon impacting into their body. With that one single blow, the pair was sent flying, collapsing onto the floor face first, and coughing a large amount of blood.

Naruto was struggling with his chin to look towards Taisho, who was already approaching Sakamoto again. He could see and hear Hideyoshi yelling worriedly "Yuki-chan". Naruto's vision was getting blurred as his consciousness began to waver. Turning his head towards Yuki, Naruto saw that she was knocked out cold. His eyes widened when he saw the pool of blood around her head. The blood was sipping and covering her snow white hair. Naruto gritted his teeth as anger began overcoming his reasons. He knew that the reason Yuki took that much damage was because she had to split her focus and guard both their bodies with chakra from the last attack. If she had not protected him, his insides would have been pulverized. Naruto was angry. He was angry at himself and angry at Taisho for hurting Yuki. From the unrestrained anger, animalistic fury was born, as rage consumed Naruto. His cerulean blue eyes began to taint with a hue of dark red.

After the two genin were sent flying, Taisho was making his way towards Sakamoto. "This is a surprise, Tetsuya, to think that the two of you would choose to stay here instead of using the distraction these genin made to escape. Do you have that much faith in their abilities, or were you so afraid you couldn't even move?" Taisho asked. Sakamoto didn't get a chance to reply as a malicious and demonic chill filled the air.

-

_T-this feeling!?_ _Did his seal break?_ Kakashi thought as he and his opponent stopped as they turned towards the demonic presence that began to spread around the hall.

"W-what is that?" Kentamaru exclaimed silently as he carelessly turned away from his opponent towards the source of the vile energy. He could see a torrent of red chakra seeping out in the distance. Instinctively, he dodged to the side as Kakashi attacked, chipping his arm with a kunai. Kentamaru grunted softly as his remaining arm grabbed his cut. It was fairly deep, though not necessary at a life threatening level.

_Damn, I have no time to waste here_. Kakashi thought after he missed. He had tried to finish the battle just now.

-

"What is this... Maito Gai?" Akira asked as the two stood at a standstill. Their battle had stopped the instant they felt the demonic energy filling the room.

_I... I never thought I would feel this vile energy again._ Gai thought. _As I thought, it was far too dangerous for them to fight Taisho. This has gotten far too out of hand_. Gai concluded with a scowl. _First gate, Kai_!

-

The rest of the combatants could feel the energy seeping through the room, but neither side had the room for a break. Even one moment of distraction could cost them their lives, as such, they continued to attack, deciding that the sooner they dealt with the opponents, the sooner they could deal with the new raising problem.

-

Taisho was instantly able to locate the source of the demonic energy as he turned to where he had sent Naruto and Yuki. The pair had gotten up onto their feet as if unharmed by his previous attack.

Naruto was growling and his features had gotten far more feral. His fangs had lengthened, his whiskers thickened and where cerulean blue eyes once was, was replaced with demonic red eyes with a black slit. A vicious torrent of red chakra surrounded his body which was extended onto Yuki.

Beside Naruto, Yuki had woken up. She too, like Naruto had gone through a drastic change. Her eyes were replaced with the same demonic eyes. Her fangs had lengthened significantly. Though, unlike Naruto, she was gritting her teethes tightly, as if she was in pain. What might have been the most drastic change was Yuki's snow white hair, which were now jet black.

Kiba, who had regained his consciousness part way through Naruto and Yuki's battle exclaimed softly, "Y-yuki?! W-why did her hair change color?"

Naruto and Yuki remained silent as they charged towards Taisho, at a speed that far exceeded their earlier limits. The resulting impact between the two and Taisho sent Taisho skidding back and away from the Tetsuya brothers. Without stopping, they were a mere flash of red as they chased after their opponent. All traces of strategy seemed to be gone, as they relied on nothing but their instincts.

Taisho was prepared this time as he waited for the pair to attack so he could counterattack. To his surprise, the pair was easily dancing away from his blows, staying close to him, relying on nothing but their speed. It dawned on Taisho that what he once thought was a desperate attack was anything but. They were relying on their great speed and smaller size to fight him. They had chosen to abandon the less risky hit and run style after realizing its weaknesses against him.

Indeed, now that they were far stronger and faster than before, the pair was pushing Taisho back and away from the Tetsuya brothers. But despite all their efforts, they were unable to deal any actual damage onto the missing-nin. What made Taisho so resilient wasn't simply his muscular physique, but the ability to coat his body with earth nature chakra. If lightning nature chakra gave the user "speed" and "cutting" attributes, the characteristic of earth nature chakra was to "reinforce". Taisho, a master of earth manipulation could coat his body with it, heightening the defence of his body. At the same time, he could strengthen his punches and kicks, resulting in a devastating impact. In many ways, earth nature chakra has the most affinity out of all the elements in hand-to-hand combat.

Quickly, the surprise advantage the pair had gained was lost. Taisho had quickly gauged the scope of their powers. _I have wasted far too much time_. Taisho thought as he felt the first of his allies to be taken down. Taisho stopped moving as he allowed the two genin to attack him. Not even with as much as a flinch, Taisho initiated his counterattack at the moment of their attack. He sent Naruto and Yuki flying away, though neither had received much damage because of Kyuubi's cloak which enveloped their body. It was too late for the pair to react as Taisho intercepted their landing, appearing behind them. With an unrelenting assault, Taisho separated the duo, sending them flying to opposite ends of the hall, as they finally stopped after crashing into the wall. Yuki had fallen unconscious again at this point, though Kyuubi's chakra continued to glow, rapidly repairing her damaged body.

Naruto on the other hand was struggling onto his knees, having stayed conscious through sheer willpower. His mind was in absolute chaos as he struggled to stand, to get to Yuki before she died to the curse. Everything seemed hopeless as Taisho's shadow loomed over Naruto.

_This boy is the origin of that energy, if I leave him alive, there is no doubt he will become a potential threat to my plans_. Taisho thought as he raised one hand. _I will end his life now, before he reaches his full potential_.

Naruto had fallen unconscious as he finally succumbed to his wounds. With nothing to stop Taisho, he was only mere seconds away from ending the young genin's life when his instincts kicked in, forcing him to abandon his task as he leapt back.

Where Taisho once stood, a giant man slammed a glowing blue orb into the ground, causing a large explosion of dust and debris. With his senses, Taisho could feel the presence within the smoke screen, a tremendous chakra that dwarfs his. When the smoke finally cleared, a giant white haired man stood protectively in front of Naruto. He wore flashy red clothes and a forehead protector with the kanji "oil". Quickly determining who it was, Taisho greeted with surprising calmness, "I never expected you to be here, one of the sannin, the legendary toad sage, Jiraiya."

-

"Jiraiya-sama!" Kakashi exclaimed with a sigh of relief when he saw Jiraiya saving Naruto. He had broken into a cold sweat when he thought Taisho was going to kill Naruto. Though he had tried his hardest, he was unable to get away from Kentamaru's unrelenting assault to help Naruto.

"Jiraiya, the legendary toad sage, so he was here all along," Kentamaru said with such calmness that Kakashi could feel a nagging feeling in the back of his mind.

_He isn't one bit surprised that a legendary sannin had just arrived, is he that confident in Taisho, or did they already plan for this_? Kakashi thought. "You look surprisingly calm. Do you not grasp your current situation?" Kakashi provoked as he formed several hand seals. The sound of a thousand birds filled the hall. "With the exception of Taisho and Akira, all your allies have fallen," Kakashi continued. "This is the end."

Shaking his head softly, Kentamaru had a small smirk on his face, "It would appear that the almighty 'Sharingan' isn't as all seeing as rumours have it," Kentamaru taunted.

-

"Jiraiya!" Akira exclaimed as he skidded back after blocking a punch from Gai. The man had suddenly gotten faster and stronger than before, forcing him to be on the defensive. He had already deduced that the spandex wearing man had opened one of the eight gates. _I... if this goes on, I'll lose. Taisho-san explicitly told me and Shinri to hold back as much as possible, if this goes on I have no choice but to use 'that'_.

-

Asuma and Kurenai had just finished their opponent when Jiraiya arrived. They both let out a sigh of relief when Naruto was saved. They quickly looked around to look for others to aid.

-

"W-we've won!" Chouji announced happily when the jounin they were fighting finally fell unconscious from Shino's kikai bugs.

A loud explosion occurred as Shikamaru, Shino and Chouji turned towards the source, seeing a white haired man standing protectively in front of Naruto.

-

Sakura and Ino cheered happily and hugged each other with joy when their opponent was finally knocked out by Sasuke. Ino had joined in the battle using Sakura's tactic. The trio of genin had proved to be too much for the low ranking jounin who specialized in ninjutsu and not taijutsu.

_This man is hardly worthy of being called a jounin, his skills in taijutsu is far too weak. Against those guys... he'd have been taken down in an instant_. Sasuke thought darkly and with a scowl as Sakura and Ino tied up the jounin. He was scanning the room at the other battles, but mostly searching for Naruto and Yuki, when an explosion occurred at one end of the hall, kicking up dust.

-

"Yosha! This is our burning flames of youth!" Lee yelled excitedly as he and his team finally took out the jounin.

Several kunai and shuriken were stuck on the jounin's vest. The jounin was unconscious, knocked out by a powerful punch by Lee and a powerful palm thrust in the stomach courtesy of Neji. They had finally gained an opening when Tenten caught the man off guard with a hail of extremely accurate and well aimed shuriken and kunai.

"We have to go help Naruto," Tenten yelled at her cheering teammate and her silent one. She was pointing towards where Taisho loomed over the unconscious Naruto. She was ready to run over when Neji suddenly grabbed her shoulder.

"That... isn't necessary," Neji explained. Tenten was ready to yell at him until she realized that his Byakugan was activated. Tenten relaxed when she realized that Neji noticed something that she did not. She was given her answer quickly as an explosion occurred where Naruto was lying, which kicked up a small cloud of smoke. When it was cleared, Tenten could clearly see a man standing in front of Naruto protectively.

-

"I should have been here sooner," Jiraiya said with a scowl as he glanced at Naruto who was lying behind him in a pool of his own blood. "If only those moronic and selfish idiots would cooperate for even a moment, instead of endangering everyone for their own lives," Jiraiya continued with clear displeasure. The reason that Jiraiya had come to the party in the first place was mostly due to Sarutobi's request. He had assisted in the evacuation and had already taken out numerous ninjas Taisho had set up in ambush outside the building. Though, because of the nobles' careless and selfish actions, he was forced to spend precious time fixing their mistakes. "From here on out, you'll be fighting me," Jiraiya announced.

"I'm afraid that your appearance is outside the scope of my calculation," Taisho replied calmly as he turned away from Jiraiya and began to walk away. "Our battle will have to wait, I'll be withdrawing now," Taisho finished.

"Do you really think I'll let you leave so easily?" Jiraiya asked as he began forming seals.

Taisho calmly raised one arm, as he snapped his fingers before Jiraiya could finish. At that instant, consecutive explosions occurred around the hall as the numerous explosive notes Taisho and his group had set up prior ignited. The explosion took out the walls supporting the hall as it began to collapse.

"Damn it," Jiraiya said as he stopped his technique, instead, quickly bit his thumb and drawing blood. Forming several hand seals, Jiraiya placed the palm on one hand onto the floor as several large burst of smoke surrounded him. Five gigantic toads appeared around the toad sage. "Guys, can you help me grab the wounded and escape from here?" Jiraiya asked.

The toads quickly realized the situation as they nodded and each of them leapt to Hinata, Yuki, Kiba and the Tetsuya brothers respectively. The rest of the Konoha-nin had begun to evacuate after seeing the toads that were moving towards their fallen allies. Jiraiya turned and grabbed Naruto carefully so as to not aggravate the boy's wounds further. "Outside the scope of your calculations? Don't kid with me, you expected this to happen from the start...!" Those were the last words Jiraiya said as he quickly exited the collapsing hall.

-

_Chapter 11 preview: The aftermath... this only happened because I was too weak!_

A/N: The conclusion of this arc. I think I have enough action in this one chapter to last a while. After this, it'll be a while before the action picks up again while the plot moves on. Once again, I devoted most of the chapter to Naruto and Yuki's battle, leaving only snippets of the other's battle. What do you guys feel regarding this? Do you want me to write their battle too (which would make this far, far, longer), or stick to the current style? Though, it was mostly to keep things easier for me to write, it is also to keep the fighting abilities of my OCs a secret until their return. (Akira's "that" technique, yeah... just trying to put off thinking about it till its reveal :D) Did I mention I'm bad with names?

Regarding everyone's opponent, Asuma and Kurenai had the middle ranking jounin, both of which were not exactly their level. The genin all fought low rank jounin, or just elite chunin, doesn't matter which way you look at it. Kentamaru and Akira are another level compared to them, that's why Kakashi and Gai had more trouble than everyone else. Regarding Akira and Kentamaru holding back, they are, but not anymore than Kakashi or Gai. In this story, this is how I interpret the strength of the genin. (Note that I am excluding Naruto and Yuki's Kyuubi shroud and Lee's gates) Of course, this is merely their specs, in a battle, strategy makes a huge difference.

1) Naruto/Yuki = Lee = Neji

2) Sasuke

3) Shino/Kiba

4) Hinata/Tenten/Sakura

5) Shikamaru/Chouji

6) Ino (She'll improve, just that character development only kicked in this chapter)

Regarding my interpretation of elemental chakra, I kind of want some feedback too. After seeing the Raikage using lightning element coating, I thought, what about the other nature types? Thus earth nature coating was born. I kind of have a clue what the other types will be able to do, but I do want to know what you guys might think (I also wonder if any other people have used this idea).

I also enjoy bringing back Kyuubi into the story. I had the Kyuubi's shroud planned ever since the Wave country arc, which was where it was originally going to make its debut. Yuki's hair changing color back to its original black was something I wanted to introduce too (Only happens during Kyuubi's shroud). I also introduced another sub-plot in this chapter which most of you have already guessed, I bet. (Golden Bastard anyone?)

Lastly, I'll say it now, the chunin exams won't happen for at least a minimum of two more chapters at least. Though the next arc will be small, it is a canon event, just moved around. It'd be fun if you guys try to guess which event I'll be moving up. Also, for those who bothered to read this block of text and reply, thanks!

-

**Please teach us, Zabuza-sensei!**

Chapter 2: Stalking is okay as long as you're a prankster! The first step to a prank is to know your target!

"There's nothing to do!" Konohamaru whined. He was walking down the bustling streets with his two closest friends, Udon and Moegi. The three of them formed the 'Konohamaru Ninja Squad'. "I can't believe Naruto-nii and Yuki-nee went on a mission!" Konohamaru continued his rant.

Tipping his glasses, Udon replied, "They are genin after all."

"I wonder what Yuki-oneesama is doing right now!" Moegi said with a shine in her eyes. After meeting Naruto and Yuki, she had quickly grown attached to Yuki, idolizing her.

Walking down the streets at a furious pace was Zabuza. He was in a horrible mood after the day spent at the academy. He had just separated from Haku at the market so she could get the ingredients for dinner. _I wonder what kind of monstrosity will be brought to existent tonight_. Zabuza thought as his stomach rumbled with pain. Storming down the streets and deep in thought, Zabuza did not notice the three troublemakers from his class.

Konohamaru's eyes widen when he realized that it was Zabuza that stormed by. His shock was quickly replaced with a grin. "I just thought of something to do," Konohamaru said excitedly.

The trio was following Zabuza from a distance. So far, it would appear that he had not notice them yet. "Why are we following Zabuza-sensei, Konohamaru-kun?" Moegi whispered quietly.

"Isn't it obvious?" Konohamaru said with a smirk. "We've found our new prank target!"

"Z-zabuza-sensei?! But he looks so dangerous, Konohamaru-kun!" Udon said as he sniffled, wiping the snot dripping off his nose.

"Don't worry, he hasn't seen us yet, not to mention, we have this!" Konohamaru announced dramatically as he pulled out a small book. "The legendary book that Naruto-nii bestowed to me. The legendary manual with all of Naruto-nii's experience as a prankster! This is a good chance for me to use it," Konohamaru said with a grin. Naruto had written the book (lazily and mindlessly mind you) to get Konohamaru to stop bothering him during his and Yuki's month of training. Surprisingly, Konohamaru had yet to use it.

Huddling into a small circle, Konohamaru slowly opened the book. Written extremely large and surprisingly neat was Naruto's first rule. "Rule number 1, know thy enemy," Udon read out.

"Number 2! Always think one step ahead," Moegi continued excitedly.

"The last rule, and the most important one," Konohamaru said enthusiastically, "Be prepared to run!"

"Hmm, I see, they may seem simple, but this is truly the iron clad rule of pranks," Udon said with a nod.

"Alright, let's follow him," Konohamaru announced.

"This appears to be interesting, would you allow me to participate," a monotone voice spoke from behind the trio, scaring the daylight out of the three academy students.

"W-who are you?!" Konohamaru asked with a frightened voice as he moved away from the white haired teenager standing behind the group.

"I'm Kaguya Kimimaro," Kimimaro greeted with one hand lifted up in a sign of peace. "I merely wish to participate in this intriguing endeavour you wish to embark upon," Kimimaro explained.

One thought resonated in the three student's mind. _Intriguing endeavour_? _It's just a prank_. They thought as they stared at Kimimaro with a sweat drop.

"Why would you want to do something like this? How can we trust you?" Konohamaru asked warily.

"You could say I enjoy watching that man's torment."

"So you have a grudge against him?" Udon asked.

"Hmm, not a grudge per say, if you must put it into words, entertainment?" Kimimaro replied.

_What did Zabuza-sensei do to this guy_? The three students wondered.

"Allowing me into this group is most beneficial, for I have lots of knowledge regarding your target," Kimimaro enticed.

With a thoughtful look, Konohamaru began to weigh the pros and cons. "Very well, you're in!" Konohamaru decided as he walked up and held up one hand. "Welcome to the group!"

Shaking hands, a new group was form, a sinister group far greater than what Naruto alone had once accomplished. No one in the village was safe. The start of Zabuza's nightmarish days has only begun!

-

A/N: Ending it here. The reason? I have no idea what kind of prank I want them to do. I'm up for suggestions ^^, who knows what'll come out next?! (I honestly don't have any idea where I'm going with this after all :D)


	11. Comatose aftermath

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: After writing this chapter, I realize I cannot for the life of me, write angst, that's good in that this will be the last time this'll happen. Due to the fact that I can only write so much angst before something happy happens, this chapter came out way less angst then I first imagine it to be, oh well! Since this is a transition chapter, I apologize for the short length ^^.

**Double Arts**

Chapter 11: Comatose Aftermath

Two days have passed since the battle with Taisho and his group. With the exception of Naruto, Yuki, Hinata and Kiba, the rest of the group had only sustained minor injuries, if any at all. They were at the hospital located in the country of tea. Kakashi was wandering the halls of the hospital checking up on everyone. He first entered the room where Kiba and Hinata were recovering. The pair had sustained heavy injuries after their brief clash with Taisho. They both had several broken ribs, though it wasn't anything life threatening. Kiba was even up and chatting as if nothing had happen. Hinata remained quiet, though she was looking far better than she had two days ago, when they had brought her in. "Kakashi," Kurenai greeted when she noticed him.

Kurenai and Shino were tasked with watching over their team, after all, besides his own team, Team 8 had suffered the most injuries in the fight. "How is the situation?" Kurenai asked.

"Asuma, Gai and their teams, along with Sasuke and Sakura have gone to help rebuilt the damages in the village," Kakashi replied. Indeed, besides the mansion, the villages itself suffered various degrees of damage from the battles the guards at the frontline had against the invading force. Taisho had a far larger group then they had first anticipated, as most of his forces were used to create a path for his main group to enter.

"What about those two...?" Kurenai asked softly, as Kiba stopped talking. They were all staring at Kakashi with various degrees of worry.

"It's a little awkward in there," Kakashi replied simply. "I'm going to go check on them now," Kakashi replied as he turned towards the door.

Team 8 looked down onto the floor as they each had their own worries of what was going on. "This wouldn't have happened if I was stronger," Kiba said as he slammed his fist onto the bed.

"Calm down Kiba, don't make this situation any worse," Kurenai said.

-

Knocking softly against the door, Kakashi received no reply. With a soft sigh, he turned the door slowly, as he peeked inside. The room was brightly lit, as the sun filled the room with light from outside. Naruto was seated next to a bed, as he held onto Yuki's hand. He had a depressed look on his face, the light in his eyes were gone, as he stared at Yuki's sleeping face. There were shadows under his eyes, indicating his lack of sleep. Several plates of food and bowls of ramen were left untouched on the small drawer next to him. "Naruto," Kakashi said softly, but received no reply from the normally alert boy.

Walking up behind the boy, Kakashi placed one hand onto Naruto's shoulder which seemed to finally catch his attention. Naruto turned slowly towards Kakashi, without any emotion, he greeted monotonously, "Kakashi-sensei."

"Naruto, I understand that you're worried, but, starving yourself and not getting enough sleep won't do you any good," Kakashi said.

Naruto turned away from Kakashi as he stared at Yuki again. "I know you feel it's your fault that this happened, but it isn't, so stop blaming yourself for everything, I know Yuki won't," Kakashi continued worriedly.

It was natural that Naruto would worry about Yuki as after the fight with Taisho, she had fallen into a coma. A coma that the doctors say she has a slim chance of waking up from. "How can I not blame myself," Naruto began softly. "This only happened because I was too weak, I succumbed to Kyuubi's powers," Naruto continued.

"If you have to blame anyone, it should be us for not coming to your aid sooner, if you hadn't used its power, Sakamoto-sama would have been killed," Kakashi explained.

"It was my fault because I was too slow to react! We could have taken that attack if Yuki didn't have to protect me as well, there was no need to rely on Kyuubi if I was stronger," Naruto retorted angrily.

"And what?" Kakashi said. He was starting to get angry himself. "You would have continued to fight? Naruto, Kyuubi's chakra might have caused all this, but it can also be considered a blessing" Kakashi tried again as he calmed down. "If it wasn't for Kyuubi's chakra suppressing her curse, Yuki would have died. You guys were separated for far too long."

"A blessing, how could this be a blessing?" Naruto yelled angrily. "Because of Kyuubi's chakra, Yuki's chakra coils were all damaged. Besides the high chances of ending her ninja career, there is the possibility that she'd never wake up... she might even lose her life!"

It was a common fact that a demon's energy was far too dangerous for the human body. That was the very reason why the Yondaime had no choice but to seal the Kyuubi into a newborn baby. A grown body's chakra coils were far too developed, making it too risky to hold Kyuubi's limitless amount of chakra. In the case of Naruto, as a newborn baby, his chakra coil adapted to Kyuubi's energy, making his body capable of handling the demon's energy. Whereas Yuki's did not, damaging her body internally. Repairing damage of that level was far too difficult for normal civilian doctors. Even med-nin's had little to no experience in treating that level of injury.

"It's true that that the doctors say she might not wake up, but, in the end they are civilians, their specialties do not lie in treating these type of injuries," Kakashi tried to reassure. "Once we return to the village, I'm sure our med-nins will be able to heal Yuki," Kakashi continued. Though he was saying it, he knew the chances were slim at most.

Naruto kept silent now as he turned away from Kakashi. The boy might not be a great liar, but his talent in seeing through people's lie are almost second to none. Kakashi clenched his fist tightly. Despite his seemingly calm behaviour, he was worried and angry as well. He was their sensei after all, yet despite that, he was unable to help them, before and even after, he could only stand aside, hoping for the best. _I've seen their strength, I thought, it's Naruto and Yuki, they'll be able to handle it. I was too naive. They've become really strong, but that fight_ _was clearly out of their league, yet I wasn't able to help them_. Kakashi thought as he silently left the room, taking one last look at Naruto. _At moments like this, what should I do... sensei, Obito_. Kakashi thought before closing the door.

-

"Hey, can we get a hand over here?" A construction worker yelled out. He was waving towards several of the genin, towards a large fallen plank.

"A-ah, okay!" Sakura replied. She was worried about Naruto and Yuki's situation. They all were, though some to a lesser degree than others.

"Sakura..., I know you're worried, so just leave this to me, alright?" Ino said kindly.

"It's alright, I'm fine," Sakura replied, giving Ino a fake smile. Running up towards the construction worker, Sakura helped him lift the plank. Ino stood at a distance watching. Ino knew that Sakura was worried, heck, she was extremely worried, and she didn't even know Naruto and Yuki that well.

_If those two didn't hold that monster back, not only would we have failed our mission, there was no doubt we'd be in trouble too_. Ino thought. Indeed, if Naruto and Yuki hadn't been holding back Taisho the whole fight, not only would Sakamoto and Hideyoshi have been killed, Taisho could have turned towards the rest of them.

"Is she really alright?" Shikamaru asked softly as he and Chouji walked up towards Ino from behind. They were staring at Sakura who was helping out several other construction workers.

"I'm sure she is worried, but she'll be fine," Ino replied. "I'm really concerned about Yuki. Naruto too," Ino continued.

"There's nothing to worry about, after all, those two are so strong," Chouji reassured, though he didn't seem too sure of his words.

"E-excuse me," a nervous voice asked from behind the trio.

Team 10 turned towards the source of the voice and realized it was Hideyoshi. He looked extremely worried. "Tetsuya-san," Ino greeted with surprise. She wasn't expecting him to be around. The boy was in shock after they had safely evacuated the hall. Though, it was to be expected, after all, he was a civilian, one with noble background. He probably hadn't faced anything of that level in his life. Feeling the intense killing intent of an S-class criminal, watching his friend (crush) beaten nearly to death, and coming extremely close to being killed himself.

"I-is Yu-yuki-chan alright?" Hideyoshi stuttered out nervously. He had lost all contact regarding her situation after the night's event.

Team 10 glanced at each other, unsure as to how to break the news to the boy. "Her injuries have all mostly healed," Ino began, as she glanced at her team for help.

"I-is that so! That's good," Hideyoshi said happily. His smile was gone when he saw the nervous glances between team 10.

"Y-yuki's injuries have all healed, bu-but-," Chouji stuttered out.

"Right now, she is in a coma, the doctors say that the chances of her waking up are extremely slim," Shikamaru finished seriously.

"W-what?!" Hideyoshi yelled. "I-i have to go see her!" Hideyoshi said urgently.

"Stop," Shikamaru interrupted the boy, he was extremely serious. "You going there won't change anything, in fact, if you go now, you'll only aggravate the situation even further," Shikamaru continued logically. "Naruto is currently with Yuki, and his current mood can only be described as dangerous, if you carelessly go in, we cannot guarantee your safety."

"What's going on here?" Asuma asked as he walked up towards his team.

"Asuma-sensei," Ino greeted as she signalled with her eyes towards the trembling Hideyoshi.

_Oh boy, where is Kurenai when you need someone to deal with this_. Asuma thought. "Hideyoshi-sama, what brings you here today?" Asuma asked kindly.

"N-no, it's nothing important," Hideyoshi replied with clenched fist. "I'm sorry for taking your time when you all are so busy helping fix this village," Hideyoshi said with a bow.

"T-that's alright, we're not really that busy," Ino said quickly.

Hideyoshi excused himself as he began to walk away. When he was far enough, Shikamaru sighed and muttered, "How troublesome... love that is."

-

"How are they doing?" Sakamoto asked. He was standing near the ruins of the destroyed mansion where the battle happened. He was overlooking the reconstruction of the village, though he had momentarily paused to speak with his acquaintance.

"They?" A man behind Sakamoto asked.

"You know who I'm talking about, Jiraiya, how are those two doing?" Sakamoto repeated calmly.

"Things aren't looking too good. The young lady is in a coma right now, though that's to be expected. Forcefully using demonic chakra like that will cause a normal human body to self-destruct. In fact, she's lucky she is still so young, her body was able to adapt, if even a little. If she were an adult, the intrusion of Kyuubi's chakra would have killed her almost instantly," Jiraiya explained. "As for Naruto, he's fine, physically at least. Though mentally, he is a little unstable. He has it somewhere in his head that everything was his fault," Jiraiya said with a small shake of his head. "He's the same as his father and mother, that sense of responsibility must run in the family," Jiraiya finished.

"Will they be fine? Is there any way for Yuki to wake up? She has done a lot for the Tetsuya family. It would be far too tragic for such incredibly talented individuals to meet their end now," Sakamoto said.

"Hmm, you seem awfully worried for two little genin," Jiraiya said with an amused smile.

"They have yet to realize their true potentials. Don't you think it'd be a shame for them to die now?" Sakamoto asked. "In the future, they would surely be famous and acknowledged."

"The young lady's injuries are far too severe, there isn't any ordinary doctor or med-nin that can save her," Jiraiya explained.

"Is that so..."

"That being said, it doesn't mean that no one out there could save her," Jiraiya said with a grin. "I've already sent word to the old man. I should be receiving a reply soon."

-

_One day after the battle with Taisho_...

Sarutobi was sitting in his office working on the stacks of paperwork laid out around him. A Hokage's job was anything but exciting, filled with endless mountains of sweet, sweet torment. He was awaiting news of the mission in the country of tea, hoping it everything had gone well. To his pleasant surprise, it wasn't a bird that flew into his office, but that of a toad. "Yo, old guy, got a message for you from Jiraiya," the toad greeted rudely.

_So Jiraiya also went, hopefully he had everything under control_. Sarutobi thought as took the scroll the toad left on the table. "Thank you for your hard work," Sarutobi said as the toad nodded. The toad sat down as he waited for Sarutobi to finish.

Rolling open the scroll, Sarutobi's smile disappeared as he read the mission briefing. The situation was far worse than he had anticipated. He never thought that such a large group of missing-nin could have snuck into their borders. Though Konoha suffered little casualties, Sarutobi was angry at his lack of preparedness. Luckily, no major VIPs were harmed, thanks to Jiraiya's intervention. As Sarutobi's eyes scanned the pages, Yuki and Naruto's names caught his utmost of attention. After reading through the whole scroll, Sarutobi quickly began writing his reply. When Sarutobi finished his reply, he turned to the young toad, "Please take this to Jiraiya," Sarutobi said.

"Alright, see ya later, old guy," The toad said as he disappeared in a burst of smoke.

Sighing as he leaned back into his chair, Sarutobi whispered, "I leave everything in your hands, Jiraiya."

-

"Are you all ready to go?" Kakashi asked the large group of genin. They were all standing outside the hospital after Kiba, Hinata and Yuki were discharged. To obtain more specialized treatment back in Konoha, the doctors allowed Yuki to be discharged despite her situation.

Naruto was standing at the back of the group and he was carrying Yuki on his back. He was still remaining silent, which was causing worry amongst the group. They were not used to the hyperactive boy being so silent, even during his serious moments. "I estimate it'll take us about three days to return to Konoha," Gai explained. Indeed, with Yuki's condition, they had no choice but to go at a normal pace, so as not to worsen her situation. Hinata and Kiba too had their own share of injuries.

The large group of Konoha-nin, with an air of awkward silence around them, made their way towards the village gate. When they arrived, Kakashi, who was at the head of the group, was the first to notice a tall white haired man leaning against the gates. "Jiraiya-sama!" Kakashi greeted respectfully.

Jiraiya turned towards them and greeted with a small wave of his hand, "Yo." Walking towards the group, the genin and jounin parted ways for the legendary toad sage, as he made his way towards the back of the group. Stopping in front of Naruto, Jiraiya towered over the younger boy. Naruto looked up at Jiraiya, with an overly serious expression. "What's with this serious and brooding face, you're still a child, act like one," Jiraiya said as he grabbed Naruto's cheeks with both his hands, stretching it.

Naruto was at first surprised, before anger replaced his shock. "W-what the hell!" Naruto lashed out as he pulled away from the older man. He was careful not to make too much of a motion as to disturb Yuki. "Who are you, old man?" Naruto asked angrily.

The rest of the konoha-nin all had various looks of disbelief. "N-naruto, he's Jiraiya-sama, one of the legendary sannin of Konoha," Sakura explained. "How can you not know who he is?"

Naruto stared blankly back at Sakura, a look of confusion on his face. The Naruto right now reminded the group of the Naruto they knew, lightening the awkward mood from before. "I am the holy sennin from Mt. Myobokuzan, Jiraiya! Remember it, boy!" Jiraiya announced proudly as he exaggeratedly danced and posed.

"Can we please get going, we have to bring Yuki back to Konoha as soon as possible," Naruto said seriously, blatantly ignoring Jiraiya's presence.

"Wait one second!" Jiraiya called out dramatically after Naruto, who was making his way through the group of stunned Konoha-nin.

"What?" Naruto dead panned, a vein was throbbing on his forehead. He was extremely worried about Yuki's condition. In hopes of getting some better treatment, they had to make haste for Konoha. Yet, out of nowhere, a strange clown was getting in their way.

"You're coming with me," Jiraiya said seriously.

"W-what?" Most of the genin, with Sasuke, Shikamaru, Shino and Neji as exception, exclaimed.

"What? Did I not say it clearly? You're coming with me," Jiraiya repeated as he pointed at Naruto. "The both of you," Jiraiya corrected himself.

"Jiraiya-sama, right now, Yuki requires medical attention, is there any reason for you to be taking them away?" Kurenai asked.

"I know what happened to the girl's body, and I also know it's not at a level where the med-nin at Konoha can treat," Jiraiya began. "As far as I know, there is only one person in this world with the expertise to deal with this. Do you get what I'm trying to say, brat? You're coming with me to find the legendary medic herself, one of the three sannin, Tsunade."

Naruto's eyes widened when he finally processed what Jiraiya had said. "T-this Tsunade can help Yuki?" Naruto asked.

"Of course," Jiraiya reassured confidently.

"T-that's great!" Sakura exclaimed with joy. "Isn't that right, guys?" Sakura asked the rest of the genin.

"Y-yes," Hinata agreed with a smile. "I'm glad that Yuki-san will be fine," Hinata continued, her eyes were tearing up with joy. Hinata, like Kiba, had blamed herself for what had happened to Yuki. She hated herself for being weak, for being taken out by Taisho and for not being able to help Naruto and Yuki.

"W-what are we waiting for! Let's get going!" Naruto said. His eyes were filled with a newfound light. For the first time in the past two days, there was a small smile threatening to spread across his face.

"Naruto...," Kiba called out silently. Naruto turned to him, confused at Kiba's timid voice. "Y-you have to find Tsunade-sama, and you have to save Yuki," Kiba continued seriously. Kiba was blaming himself for what had happened. On top of that, he felt that he had broken a promise, a promise that they'd get stronger and fight again.

Naruto quickly realized what was making Kiba so uncomfortable. _I see, I thought I was the one worrying about Yuki the most, but in the end, I was just selfish, wasn't I?_ _Kiba, Hinata, and the others, they were all worried too. Everyone, to some degree, they all blamed themselves, but I was acting like a child._ Naruto smiled softly, "Kiba-," Naruto began as Kiba looked up at Naruto and saw his confident smile. "It's not your fault that this happened. Don't worry and leave the rest to me. I'll definitely find Tsunade and bring Yuki back, that's a promise!" Naruto announced confidently as he gave Kiba a thumbs up.

Kiba looked surprised, before he smiled. "We're leaving everything to you," Kiba said as he held out a fist, which Naruto bumped with his own.

While Naruto and Kiba were conversing, Kakashi and Jiraiya had moved away from the group. "Jiraiya-sama, we have been unable to find Tsunade-sama all these years, surely it's dangerous to go on such a reckless hunt," Kakashi said logically.

"Don't worry, I only suggested this because I've recently got some leads on her where about, but that dang princess can't stay in one place because of all her debts," Jiraiya replied with a grin. "I'll have them back before the chunin exam," Jiraiya finished.

"Is that so? Please take care of them, Jiraiya-sama," Kakashi said with a small grateful bow. The two broke out of their conversation when they heard Naruto talking. Kakashi smiled softly when he heard Naruto's speech. "That boy, without me noticing, he's grown up again," Kakashi said proudly.

"Like father, like son-," Jiraiya began proudly, before pausing as he turned to Kakashi seriously, "-I think it's time. Kakashi. Since you're their sensei, I must ask you first, can you leave them in my hands from now on?"

"Naruto and Yuki have long since out grown my teaching, I leave everything to you, Jiraiya-sama," Kakashi replied with a smile. "I'm sure they will reach their full potential under your guidance."

"Thank you," Jiraiya said as he walked away from Kakashi and towards Naruto. "Yo, kid, we're going now."

"Alright, I'll see you guys soon," Naruto said as he gave his friends a grin.

"Good luck, Naruto-kun," Hinata said softly.

"Take care, Naruto, and be safe," Sakura added.

"If anything happens to Yuki, I'll have your head, okay, Naruto?" Ino said with a smile. Shikamaru sweat drops at the fact that Ino was announcing a death threat with a smile.

"Yosha, I'm sure you'll revive Yuki-chan's flames of youth, Naruto-kun!" Lee announced enthusiastically. "Right, Gai-sensei?"

"That's right!" Gai replied with equal enthusiasm.

"Naruto, I'm sure Tsunade-sama can help Yuki-chan, she is Konoha's, no, the world's greatest medic and Kunoichi. Yuki-chan is really strong, she'll wake up again, I'm sure of it!" Tenten encouraged.

"Good luck, Naruto," Shino spoke out silently.

"We'll be waiting for you return," Chouji said.

"Naruto, I've known you since our academy days," Shikamaru began as he walked out from the group, "You will always move forward despite any hardship, I know you'll bring Yuki back without doubt, don't prove me wrong now," Shikamaru finished seriously as he and Naruto exchange grins.

"I won't disappoint you guys," Naruto said confidently. Turning around, Naruto looked at Jiraiya, "Thank you for waiting, I'm ready to go now."

"Good luck, Naruto," Kurenai said as Naruto walked by.

"When you guys return, I'll treat you to some ramen, neh, Naruto, Yuki," Asuma added.

"Naruto, we await for both of your return," Kakashi finished.

"We will!" Naruto finished as he followed Jiraiya out of the village gate. Turning back once more to his friends, he lets out a foxy grin and a thumb up.

-

Yuki's eyes opened, she was lying on a clearing under the shade of several trees. There was a cool breeze in the air as she sat up groggily. Her body ached all over, and her memories were a little foggy.

"Yuki! Let's start sparring now," A voice called out for her. Yuki turned to the source of the voice, it was a beautiful woman, and she had long white hair.

"I'm coming, okaa-san!" Yuki yelled out as she quickly got to her feet and ran towards her mother, a large smile on her face.

-

_Chapter 11: The search for the legendary medic begins! What's this?! Yuki's lingering feelings for a life with her parents!_

A/N: When you think coma, you'd obviously think an obligatory dream sequence! Well, it's partly for me to have something to lengthen the chapters, but, that doesn't mean it'd serve no purpose (Hint, Hint, just what did Yuki forget when she was young? :D). There's also the chance to write Yuki's parents into the story, if even for a tiny moment, how fun!

This chapter also reinforces that Naruto is indeed growing up, well, that doesn't mean I won't have him acting like a moron, because frankly, he hasn't grown that much yet!

Tsunade enters the story now! Did anyone see this coming? With her brings a plot device I've been holding back for a while. What that is however, will have to wait till next chapter. Honestly though, I'm pretty sure I'll be getting mixed reaction from it, I think. You're welcome to try and guess what it is. The reason why I added this is because I want to see if anyone thought of the same idea!

For the sake of getting this chapter out as soon as possible, I've decided not to write the Zabuza side story, mostly because the plot in that has gotten me in a stump. Also, there'll be a break as I have to focus on other things. Hopefully everything gets back on track in a week or so. Until next time!


	12. The search for the legendary medic

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Double Arts.

Summary: When team 7 was called on a simple C-rank mission they were not expecting a result like this. During the C-rank mission while chasing after the bandits, Naruto run into a mysterious white hair girl, who was on the floor, coughing blood. Being who he was Naruto ran up to the girl, and when they came into contact their lives changed forever… AU. Story happens before Zabuza Arc. NarutoXOC

A/N: Apologize for the lateness. Chapter took longer than what I thought it would take. Not an overly long chapter but enjoy!

**Double Arts**

Chapter 12: The Search for the Legendary Medic...

It has been a while since Naruto and Jiraiya left the village. Looking back, Naruto could no longer see the village. "So, who is this Tsunade person? Is she an old hag that's as old as you?" Naruto asked rudely.

"What'd you say, you brat!" Jiraiya said angrily as he turned to Naruto, puffing out his chest proudly. "I'm the gallant Jiraiya. I'm not old at all!"

"Sure, keep deluding yourself," Naruto said with a shrug as he walked by Jiraiya.

Walking after Naruto, Jiraiya began, "as for Tsunade-hime, she's brash, rude, arrogant and selfish."

Naruto had a sweat drop as he began walking backwards while looking at Jiraiya, "and you're saying that type of person can help Yuki?" Naruto asked.

"She might have a bad personality, but there's no denying that she is the world's greatest medic," Jiraiya replied. "She's also widely known in the world by another name-," Jiraiya continued before pausing dramatically. Naruto leaned forward with anticipation. "-the legendary sucker."

Naruto's face blanched, "that's so lame."

"Tsunade is the world's worse gambler, and her gambling debt is so large it's legendary in its own right," Jiraiya finished with a chuckle.

_What am I supposed to say to something like that_? Naruto thought. "How long do you think it'll take us to find her?" Naruto asked. They were on a time limit after all.

"If my sources are correct, hopefully we can reach her within a week. Though, if we miss her, we'll have no choice but to track her down ourselves," Jiraiya replied.

"We can't spend any longer than a week! It'll be far too dangerous to bring Yuki around with us for that long. Tsunade is a sannin of Konoha, isn't she? I don't see why you can't just bring her back to Konoha," Naruto asked logically.

"Tsunade will not return to Konoha," Jiraiya replied before pausing, "she hasn't been back for over ten years. Konoha... Konoha hasn't been a place of good memories for her," Jiraiya explained calmly.

Naruto looked defeated at the answer, but replied softly, "is that so?"

"Well! Instead of spending time talking about the Slug princess, why don't you tell me about the two of you," Jiraiya said with a perverted grin.

"What's with that look," Naruto asked as he jeered at Jiraiya.

"I've heard that your fighting style, Double Arts, was based after the concept written in one of my books," Jiraiya said proudly, "honestly, I never thought I had an avid reader as young as you," Jiraiya continued.

"Your book? I don't know what that is, but, it was Kakashi-sensei who gave us the idea," Naruto replied with a look of confusion.

"W-what?!" Jiraiya exclaimed with surprise, "You've never read my work of art, Icha Icha paradise?" Jiraiya yelled as he magically pulls out a familiar orange book.

"Y-you wrote this trash that Kakashi-sensei is always reading? Y-you... e-ero-sennin!" Naruto yelled at Jiraiya and if his hands were free, he would have been pointing an accusing finger. After all, Kakashi had almost never helped with any mission in the past because he was always busy reading.

"Don't give me such a crappy nickname, you brat!" Jiraiya yelled as he tried to hit Naruto in the head. To the toad sage's surprise, Naruto tilted his head back and dodged the unexpected blow with ease.

"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed as he jeers at Jiraiya.

"Hmm, you're surprisingly well trained, that's some reflex you've got there. I see Kakashi has been training you well," Jiraiya said as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Kakashi-sensei? Sure he did give us advice from time to time, but in the end, it was Yuki and I who developed our own training," Naruto replied with a little pride. "Well, Zabuza, Haku and Kimimaro did help us refine Double Arts," Naruto added as an afterthought as he remembered the training they did in Nami no Kuni.

_So these two have been pretty much self-taught, yet they're already capable of such strength. Sakamoto is right, their potential is greater than what I first thought_. Jiraiya thought as he stared at Naruto and Yuki.

"Where are we heading anyways?" Naruto asked, breaking Jiraiya out of his thoughts.

With a small smirk, Jiraiya began, "Tsunade is black listed in every casino in the fire country and debt collectors all know her face by now, yet she is able to travel around and gamble freely. Don't you find that a little strange?"

Naruto had a thoughtful look before his face blanched, "She is using **Henge** isn't she?" Naruto asked. He would know, after all, he had always used Sasuke's form to get better deals in the village.

"Yes, and knowing her gambling nature, she'll attend the biggest gambling festival that is happening four days from now, no?" Jiraiya continued.

"But, if I were her, I'd avoid it," Naruto replied, "Since there'll be people looking out explicitly for her after all," Naruto finished logically.

"You're right, which is exactly why that princess will be there, that'll simply be more entertainment for her," Jiraiya explained.

"All you old people are insane, ero-sennin," Naruto deadpanned.

"I told you to stop calling me that! That nickname is degrading," Jiraiya retorted angrily, "I'm no ordinary pervert, I'm a super pervert!" Jiraiya announced proudly.

Naruto sweat drops as he ignored Jiraiya, turning around and increasing his pace. Jiraiya followed after Naruto who remained silent. With a grin, Jiraiya asked out of the blue, "So? Have the two of you kissed yet?"

"W-what kind of stupid question is that!" Naruto yelled out, face flushed with embarrassment as he turned around to glare at Jiraiya.

"I mean, you two can't separate, right?" Jiraiya began. "You sleep together, shower together, and-," Jiraiya explained his reasoning.

"-Whatever you might be thinking is absolutely wrong, and we haven't kissed!" Naruto interrupted.

Jiraiya stared at Naruto, who was staring back. Naruto's face was completely red from embarrassment. "Do you want to?" Jiraiya asked simply.

"Shut up, you idiot!" Naruto yelled childishly as he turned away from Jiraiya. Jiraiya snickered silently to himself when he sees the steam rising from Naruto's head.

_This, this is surprisingly entertaining_. Jiraiya thought as he walked after Naruto. He had just discovered the reason Zabuza and Kimimaro enjoyed teasing and tormenting Naruto.

Awkward silence followed as Jiraiya followed after Naruto. About five minutes later, Jiraiya asked, "So, since you haven't answered, I'm assuming you do?"

Five year old Hikari Yuki stood in a loose fighting stance. She was currently training with her mother, and they were having their daily spar. Rushing in recklessly, she attacked, throwing a large right hook. Yuki's mother parried it calmly as she continued to parry and evade the rest of her daughter's attack. "This is no good at all, Yuki," Yuki's mother said as she continued to dodge her daughter's attacks. "Haven't I mentioned time and time again that you should never recklessly attack like this? I've always told you to plan out your attacks."

"I can't beat you even if I plan out my attacks, okaa-san!" Yuki retorted as she continued attacking.

Yuki continued to attack and soon her mother began retaliating, stopping just before she lands a blow on her daughter. Yuki didn't stop, continuing her reckless storm of attack. When the mother and daughter pair finally separated, Yuki was on her knees catching her breath. Her mother on the other hand was barely sweating, waiting for her daughter to recover. "This isn't fair, okaa-san is too strong," Yuki whined.

"That is only natural. You are after all, still young, Yuki. In the future, you will surely become great," she replied, a pain filled smile was on her face. Walking up to her daughter, she took a seat in front of Yuki. "Yesterday, I talked about the history of our clan and about **Dorein**," Yuki's mother began, "today I will teach you the last of the two techniques bestowed upon us by the tailed beast."

"Is it another scary move?" Yuki quipped as she remembered her mother's story about Dorein.

"Yuukai is essentially a technique that allows the user and anyone they touch to combine into one, a fusion of body and soul, so to speak," Yuki's mother began before pausing, "the result is an increase in strength, speed, stamina, and your chakra pools and minds become linked."

Yuki's eyes shined brightly after her mother's words, "S-so, isn't that very romantic," the little girl said with a giddy smile.

"Well, that's the gist of it, but, Yuki, do you think a technique bestowed to us by a demon would be something 'romantic'," Yuki's mother replied with a small shake of her head. "**Yuukai** is after all a technique of demon origin. There isn't anything nice about that. **Yuukai** was originally intended as a medical technique, but, with our bloodline cursed for eternity, the technique only serves one purpose-," Yuki's mother continued before pausing, "-if **Dorein** is used to take chakra and the 'life essence' away from a person, then **Yuukai** is a technique that can give chakra and life. A full blooded Ketsuki can only live up to the age of 6, if their lives were not prolonged, the Ketsuki's existence would have long since disappeared with time. By using Dorein and Yuukai, the Ketsuki clan was able to feed their newborns with the chakra and life they stole, prolonging their existence," Yuki's mother explained.

"There isn't anything nice about that, I'll forget all about it!" Yuki said childishly.

Giggling softly at her daughter's antics, Yuki's mother continued, "Well, now I'll teach you how this technique works."

"If it's the union of body and souls, we just have to become one, right, right?" Yuki asked excitedly.

"I wish it was something that romantic," Yuki's mother said softly. "Sadly, this is where the true demonic nature of this technique reveals itself," Yuki's mother continued.

"W-what!" Yuki yelled out with widened eyes. "You mean it gets even worse?"

"The condition to activate **Yuukai** is simple, you must completely dominate the person you touch, that is, you must control their chakra pathways with your own," Yuki's mother said seriously. "Only by doing so will you perfectly achieve it."

Yuki's face blanched at her mother's words, "first **Dorein** and now **Yuukai**, they're both such scary techniques," Yuki said with a pout.

"But if you look at it another way-," Yuki's mother began as she grasped Yuki's hand gently, holding it out in front of both of them, "-, when you allow me to do it, isn't it a symbol of the trust and love we share?" Yuki's mother said as a gentle white aura began to envelope the pair. "Remember this feeling, Yuki, this is our bond," Yuki's mother whispered with a smile. "_I love you, Yuki._"

Yuki's eyes widened when she heard her mother's voice in her head. A faint blush tinted her cheeks as she nodded, "_I love you too, Okaa-san!"_ Yuki replied with a smile.

Later, the mom and daughter pair returned home, a small, but finely built house located next to a small, but beautiful and clear lake. Running excitedly into her house, Yuki greeted enthusiastically, "Otou-san, we're home!"

"Oh, you two are finally back," a young man replied as he turned to greet his daughter and wife. He had jet black hair, it was messy, the classical case of bad bed hair. He was barely able to react as a speeding bolt of energy tackled into him, knocking the air out of his lungs. Yuki hugged her father with a smile. "Hmm, you're uncharacteristically affectionate today, Yuki," Yuki's father said with an amused smile as he patted his daughter's head.

"Mou, I'm always a loving daughter!" Yuki replied with a pout.

"Of course you are," Yuki's father replied as he lifted Yuki and twirled her around. Setting Yuki back onto her feet, Yuki's father turned towards his wife, who stood by the door watching with a smile. "Akane, you two are early today," he said with a grin.

"Well, the sunlight was especially strong today," Akane replied with a smile.

"Is that so," Yuki's father said with a chuckle as he kneeled down to Yuki's eye level, "-so, what did okaa-san teach you today?"

"Me and okaa-san shared the bonds of our love," Yuki announced with pride as she crossed her arms across her chest proudly.

"Only with your okaa-san? What about your otou-san, Yuki?"

Yuki tiptoed as she placed a kiss onto her father's cheek before she moved back, a small blush on her cheeks as she grinned, "there!"

When the Konoha team arrived at the gates of Konoha, Kakashi and Sakura were surprised to see several familiar faces waiting for them. One thing in particular caught Kakashi and Sakura's attention. "What happened to you, Zabuza?" Kakashi asked with a sweat drop.

Indeed, the fearsome demon of the mist had undergone a complete makeover. He was covered, from head to toe, with pink paint. Zabuza scoffed as he growled out angrily, "don't talk about it," Kakashi and the rest of the group could see his oh so obvious glaring towards a certain young boy with the group. Haku was stifling a giggle as she stood beside Zabuza.

"Where is Naruto-nii and Yuki-nee?" The fore mentioned young boy asked as his eyes scanned the crowd for his hero.

"We ran into some trouble during the mission, Konohamaru," Kakashi replied softly, "they'll return sometime later."

"T-they're fine, right?" Konohamaru asked.

"Yes, they're in capable hands."

"You genin must be tired after all that travelling, just leave the debriefing to us," Asuma said as he turned towards the genin.

"Yes sir!" They replied as the group began to disband, some to rest, while some headed in the direction of the training field.

Haku ushered Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi with her as Kimimaro followed behind, leaving the jounin with Zabuza. Kakashi and Zabuza began walking after Gai, Kurenai and Asuma, "what happened?" Zabuza asked.

Kakashi tried to look serious, but, every time he stared at Zabuza, covered head to toe in pink paint, he couldn't help but crack a smile. Shaking his head of the thought, Kakashi replied, "Those two fought against Taisho."

"The crimson fist?"

"Yes, and in the process, Yuki fell into a coma," Kakashi continued with a serious expression, "right now, those two, Naruto and Yuki are with Jiraiya of the sannin, in search of Tsunade."

"I see, well, those two have the tenacity to survive, there isn't really anything to worry about," Zabuza finished with a nod.

"Besides that, are you going to get rid of that pink paint? You look absolutely ridiculous."

Three days passed since Naruto, Yuki and Jiraiya had set out in search of Tsunade. The trio had finally arrived at the city of gamblers, where the world's biggest casinos were situated. Entering the village, Naruto was looking excitedly around, "this is incredible!" Naruto yelled as he took in the futuristic look of the city that was completely different than Konoha's natural beauty. Shaking his head to rid the thoughts of looking around, Naruto turned towards Jiraiya, "Where do we look for Tsunade?" Naruto asked. Naruto gaped in shock when he saw Jiraiya walking into a small casino. "H-hey! What the hell, ero-sennin."

"Don't be in such a hurry, you brat," Jiraiya replied. "Relax a bit. The festival doesn't start till tomorrow, so it'll be literally impossible to find Tsunade. Even she won't start gambling until the festival, seeing as though she'll lose repeatedly and reveal her true nature."

"But Yuki has gotten far paler since three days ago," Naruto said worriedly, as he peeked over his shoulder at Yuki's face.

"Calm down and trust me, it'll be impossible to blindly look for Tsunade, if, and if we somehow wish to, we'll have to be pretty damn lucky," Jiraiya remarked.

"Tsunade!?" Jiraiya exclaimed with surprise as he stared at the young blonde seated at the bar across from where he stood at the entrance. It was night time now and Jiraiya, Naruto and Yuki had just entered a bar (by Jiraiya's insistence) for dinner.

"Really, where?" Naruto yelled excitedly as he peeked out from behind Jiraiya, scanning the bar for an old woman who looked around Jiraiya's age. "Where is she, ero-sennin?" Naruto asked.

"Jiraiya!" A beautiful blonde exclaimed. She was seated in front of the trio. There was a black haired woman next to her.

_We actually found her… this brat, his luck is seriously unreal_. Jiraiya thought with a sweat drop as Naruto excitedly walked towards Tsunade. He was remembering the amount of money Naruto won playing lottery and helping him gamble.

"Please help her!" Naruto said as he stood in front of Tsunade's table.

Tsunade's eyebrow rose at the sudden request, noticing the pale looking girl that Naruto was carrying on his back. "Who are they, Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked calmly, ignoring Naruto, as she looked towards Jiraiya.

"This boy is Uzumaki Naruto and this is his partner, Hikari Yuki," Jiraiya introduced as he walked up behind Naruto.

"I see…," Tsunade said calmly as she studied Naruto and then Yuki. "Let me take a guess as to what happened," Tsunade started after analyzing the pair. "Using the lost technique **Yuukai**, the pair fought someone powerful. At the brink of defeat, his inner 'tenant' surfaced and damaged the girl internally."

Naruto's eyes widened at the accuracy of Tsunade's guess, "then… then can you help Yuki?" Naruto asked.

"I can…," Tsunade replied, stopping as Naruto interrupted excitedly.

"That's gre-!?" Naruto began before Tsunade interrupted.

"But I won't," Tsunade finished as she took a drink of her sake.

"Tsunade!" Jiraiya exclaimed in surprise.

Naruto's eyes narrowed darkly as he glared at Tsunade, "Why?" He asked.

Tsunade looked into his eyes without fear, "That girl is a Ketsuki, she and the rest of her clan should have been killed off fifty years ago, there is no reason why I should save her," Tsunade replied calmly.

"Tsunade...!" Jiraiya began before Tsunade interrupted sharply.

"Shut up, Jiraiya," Tsunade interrupted before turning back to Naruto. "I am merely doing that girl a favour. Isn't it better for her to die now? I know this brat is keeping her alive right now, but, for how long? Sooner or later you'll find her as a burden, when that happens, won't you just abandon her? Why not save her the pain of being abandoned, let her die without having to experience that," Tsunade explained her reasoning with a hardened gaze.

"Y-you!" Naruto growled darkly, his free hand was clenching the table strongly. He was visibly shaking in anger. He was ready to lash out at Tsunade, when he suddenly remembered Yuki's words.

"_You know, if you keep it up like that, it's really no good at all," Yuki said thoughtfully. Yuki and Naruto were resting on the grass after a tough morning of training._

"_W-what is no good?" Naruto asked in confusion._

"_You lashed out at the villagers again, I just don't think you should," Yuki explained._

_Naruto had a face of disdain as he realized what Yuki was saying. "It's not like I want to," Naruto began, "but they were insulting you again."_

"_And I've been saying I can handle it," Yuki said, turning her head to look at Naruto, a small smile on her face. "If we're going to be partners now, the least I can do is share your burden."_

"_Still, it makes me mad," Naruto said with a frown._

_Looking away from Naruto, Yuki stared up at the sky. "My mother once said to me that nothing can truly be resolved with anger and violence," Yuki began. "I understand it better now that I'm older. She's right, sometimes, isn't it better if you just calmly and peacefully try and resolve the problem, I'm sure eventually the villagers will come to respect you, I'm the prime example," Yuki finished with a laugh._

"_So you're saying you didn't respect me when we first met?!" Naruto asked as he jeered childishly at Yuki._

"_Yeah, I thought you were the loudest and most annoying moron ever," Yuki replied through her laughter, "nothing has changed since then though."_

"_Hey, that was uncalled for, Yuki!"_

Naruto took a deep breath as he relaxed. His action surprised Jiraiya, whose eyes perked up in surprise. He had fully expected the boy to lash out and attack Tsunade in his rage, thus up to him to stop the boy before he gets his ass kicked, or potentially killed. Naruto was staring at Tsunade again, his eyes, which had once been filled with anger, were replaced with a different kind of intensity. "Please help Yuki, you're the only who can," Naruto pleaded, his voice was full of sincerity.

"Tsunade-sama, I think-," Tsunade's assistant began as she finally spoke up.

Tsunade interrupted as she lifted one hand up to stop her assistant, "Alright damn it, how can I not help now. I'd look like the bad guy, won't I?" Tsunade groaned as she gave in, rubbing the back of her neck "Damn, that's why I hate your type, a brat like you should act your age, act rashly so I can kick your ass around for a bit," Tsunade said as she stood up.

Naruto watched her in confusion as Tsunade walked by and towards the exit. Tsunade stopped as she turned back towards Naruto. "What are you standing around for? Stop being an idiot and let's go, I don't have all day," Tsunade said with an annoyed scoff.

"R-right!" Naruto said with a huge grin as he excitedly ran after Tsunade. Naruto ran after Tsunade who was walking at a brisk pace. "Thank you," Naruto said when he caught up.

"I still stand by what I said. You'll eventually find her a burden and abandon her. I don't really care either way, after I heal her, the two of you won't be my problem anymore," Tsunade said.

"And we'll prove you wrong, we'll become the greatest," Naruto replied confidently.

"Hmph, the greatest? Dream on, you brat."

Naruto was lingering behind Shizune, Tsunade's assistant. The group was walking down the hall of the hotel towards Tsunade's room. Jiraiya and Tsunade were chatting in the back. Naruto was a little jumpy and excited, in a hurry for Tsunade to examine Yuki.

"So? Do you think you can do it?" Jiraiya asked as he and Tsunade followed after Shizune and Naruto.

"Who do you think I am? I'll have her up and running in a week," Tsunade replied cockily. "Well, there's also something I'm interested in trying, this is a rare chance after all, it isn't every day that'd you'd meet the sole survivor of the Ketsuki clan."

"Is that so…," Jiraiya began, "about before, do you really believe you're right?"

"I already told the brat that my mind hasn't been changed, I merely gave in because he reminded me so strongly of his parents," Tsunade replied.

"How about a bet?" Jiraiya asked with a grin. "I bet that they'll stick together through all sorts of hardship and emerge victorious against all odds."

"You're on," Tsunade quickly answered, a smirk on her face. "If I win, why you don't pay off all my debt," Tsunade said thoughtfully, "you make more than enough selling that trash of yours."

"What if I win?" Jiraiya asked. He wasn't the least bit worried.

"Well, we'll decide it when we get to that point, not that I'd lose," Tsunade answered haughtily.

The pair shook hands to confirm the deal, "hey, what are you two doing? Hurry up," Naruto impatiently called out.

"Shut up, brat, don't rush me," Tsunade yelled back as she and Jiraiya entered the room Shizune opened. Entering the room, Shizune closed the door. "Put the girl on the bed," Tsunade commanded.

Naruto quickly heeded Tsunade's command as he placed Yuki on the bed gently and carefully. "What now?" Naruto asked.

"Kiss her," Tsunade replied with a grin.

Naruto stared at Tsunade blankly, before his eyes widened as he lets out a huge, "what?"

"I thought I was pretty clear, kiss the girl, lips to lips," Tsunade said with an increasing grin. Jiraiya was snickering softly from beside Tsunade.

"What did you tell her, Ero-sennin?!" Naruto yelled out accusingly. "Besides that, what does kissing Yuki have anything to do with healing her?" Naruto asked logically.

"Haven't you heard of sleeping beauty? A kiss from the prince to wake up from an eternity of sleep? Though you're hardly prince material," Tsunade explained.

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?" Naruto yelled out, "and stop insulting me when you get the chance!" Naruto added as an afterthought.

"Well, kissing the girl doesn't really do anything except for my own amusement," Tsunade began. Her answer caused Naruto to fume. "Though, if you let me finish, you'll find it worth your while," Tsunade continued as she now caught Naruto's full attention. "You see, while I've never met a member of the Ketsuki clan until now, during my medical studies while I was young, I was vastly interested in the legendary curse of the Ketsuki clan," Tsunade began, "to my understanding, it is widely believed that there are two known ways to suppress the curse," Tsunade continued, "the first way is what you have been doing all this time, by coming in contact with a jinchuriki. The second way is to obtain the blessing of a tailed beast. During my studies, I theorized a third way of suppressing the curse, though it has yet to be tested," Tsunade explained, "by using an extremely rare item, it should be possible to suppress the killing effect of the Ketsuki curse," Tsunade finished as she lifted her hands behind her neck and unattached the necklace around her neck. "This is the legendary necklace of Shodaime Hokage, it's been said to be worth the price of three mountains, and it also has the effect of suppressing the powers of a tailed beast. If you kiss the girl, I'll lend it to you until she recovers."

Naruto eyed the necklace with interest, "what proof do you have that'll work?" Naruto asked warily.

"I don't, but you're in a win win situation regardless," Tsunade said with a shrug, "don't you think it'd be stupid not to try? All you have to do is simply give the girl a kiss. It doesn't really mean anything to you, does it?" Tsunade asked as she skilfully manipulated Naruto.

Naruto eyed the necklace and then at Yuki, his face turning a bright red. Naruto wouldn't have been half as embarrassed if it wasn't for the three pair of amused eyes watching his every move. "I'm sorry Yuki," Naruto whispered softly, as he nervously brushed his lips against Yuki's, the contact lasted less than a second as Naruto pulled back, completely red with embarrassment. "There!" Naruto yelled.

"What, that's so boring," Tsunade exclaimed in between her laughter. "Redo it, make it longer this time."

"Shut up, you didn't give me a time limit to begin with, give me the necklace!" Naruto retorted angrily.

"Man, you're no fun at all," Tsunade said as she carelessly tossed the necklace to Naruto, who caught it with a glare as he childishly sticks out his tongue at the three adults.

Turning to Yuki, Naruto had a faint blush when he looked at Yuki's face. Shaking his head of the thoughts, Naruto carefully placed the necklace around Yuki's neck. Once he was satisfied, he slowly lets go of his hand, he was ready to grab Yuki's hand again if there was a change in condition, but nothing happened. Yuki remained perfectly asleep, even without coming in contact with Naruto. "I-it wor-!" Naruto began before he was roughly lifted off the ground by the scruff of his jacket. "H-hey, let me down!" Naruto yelled as Tsunade effortlessly held him in the air.

"Get the hell out of my room and go take a bath, you stink," Tsunade said as she tossed Naruto over her head and towards the door as he landed ungracefully.

Picking himself up from the ground, Naruto was staring at Tsunade, who stared back. "Aren't you going to start healing her now?" Naruto asked.

"Get the hell out, both of you," Tsunade yelled as she pointed at both Jiraiya and Naruto. "Now!"

Naruto and Jiraiya, fearing Tsunade's wrath, quickly scurried out of the door. Once Shizune locked the door, Tsunade made sure that both Naruto and Jiraiya's presence was gone. "Undress the girl. I need to do a thorough examination of her body." Tsunade said to Shizune as Shizune nodded in reply.

"That hag is so scary," Naruto mumbled as he sunk into the waters of the hot springs. He had taken a shower and decided to rest in the hot springs.

"Tsunade has always been like that," Jiraiya said out of the blue, scaring Naruto, who was unaware of his presence. Jiraiya was against the fence separating the males from the female's side of the hot spring.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked as Jiraiya began looking around the fence for something.

"I'm looking for a hole in this stupid fence," Jiraiya replied casually as he continued.

Naruto nodded his head before he sunk into the waters again. "W-wait what?" Naruto asked when he realized what Jiraiya had said. "What the hell are you doing, ero-sennin!" Naruto yelled as he leapt out of the water, as he tried to pry Jiraiya off the fence. "That's illegal!"

"Stop making so much noise, you damn brat!" Jiraiya yelled angrily as he tried to pull Naruto off him. When Jiraiya failed to pull Naruto off him, his rummaged his mind for an idea. "Oh, by the way, how was the kiss with Yuki?" Jiraiya asked with a smirk, knowing that Naruto would over react and let go of him.

True to his words, Naruto grip loosened as Jiraiya managed to free himself. "W-w-what do y-you mean how was the kiss?" Naruto feinted innocence as he stammered his words, a blush on his face.

_Damn, this is far too amusing_. Jiraiya thought as he chuckled at the fun he was about to have, tormenting Naruto that is.

_Chapter 13 preview: I'm going back to Konoha alone? Naruto and Yuki separated!_

A/N: Did anyone see this happening (That being the Shodaime Necklace thing)? I'm honestly surprised I actually managed to continue the story to this point. Originally, I wanted to add a lot more to this chapter, but I decided that to not break the flow of the chapter, I should just leave the rest for the next chapter. Next chapter marks the end of the Tsunade Arc and finally the start of the Chunin Exam arc. Also, Naruto and Yuki, I just had to throw that in there, since that's something Tsunade and Jiraiya would definitely come up with :D.

With the whole Shodaime Necklace revelation, I almost forgot about the 'true' history of Yuukai. Did anyone expect something like that? Honestly, while I originally intended for it to be such a technique, I'm surprised at how well the name fits. Originally I picked the name because it meant 'fusion', but I later find out that it can also mean 'abduction, kidnapping, hades, realm of the dead' (Not sure if it's true, though that's what the English to Japanese Dictionary says).. It's surprisingly a fitting name for a demonic technique.

I recently looked back at the older chapters and I realized there are tons of things to fix, so I might be going back to fix it in between this chapter and the next as well. **By the way, for any who is interested, please read through the story summaries I have up on my profile and vote for the one you'd like to read. I kind of wish to start a side story along with Double Arts, though I'm not sure if I'll be going through with it 100%. **Thanks and until next time!

**Please teach us, Zabuza-sensei!**

Chapter 3: Operation Zabuza

"Seriously, of all the names we could come up with, Operation Zabuza?" Konohamaru asked in bewilderment as he, Udon, Moegi and Kimimaro were seated at the restaurant Naruto and Yuki frequented.

"Though I agree that we could have chosen a better name, it matters not. Are we clear on what we must do?" Kimimaro asked in a monotone voice as he glanced at the three students with him.

"Of course, leave everything to me," Konohamaru replied with a grin.

Haku, who was walking by with the night's grocery was surprised to find Kimimaro chatting with three of the academy's student in the restaurant. "Kimimaro-nii is surprisingly popular with the kids," Haku said with a giggle, completely unaware of the mischief the group of four was plotting.

Later that day, Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi and Kimimaro walked out of a prank store with several bags. A young Hyuuga who was walking home after self-training at the training fields caught sight of the four. She caught sight of a plastic bag sticking out of the bags in their hands. There were clearly feathers in the plastic. "Why am I stuck in this class again," she murmured, leaving without glancing back.

When Zabuza walked up to the entrance of the class, he could already tell something was wrong. The normal loud chattering within the class was replaced with a strange and unfamiliar silence. So the demon of the mist was alert when he slid open the door. With reflexes of an elite jounin, Zabuza leapt forward, rolling and avoiding the two buckets that tipped over contents where he once stood. Thick glue and feathers spilled out of the two buckets hanging on top of the door, pulled over by a rope that was attached to the door. The class, which had struggled to remain silent, had let out a collective sigh of disappointment when Zabuza successfully avoided the prank.

"As if there is an elite jounin stupid enough to fall for such a childish prank," Zabuza scoffed loudly at the students.

Far away from Konoha, Kakashi sneezed loudly. "Are you alright, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"I'm alright, I think I might have caught a small cold," Kakashi replied with a grin underneath his mask before he turned back to his book.

Zabuza had caught sight of someone on the building across from the academy. Storming towards the window, he slammed the window open, forcing himself up and on top of the perch. "You're not getting away from me, you damn brat," Zabuza said angrily as he leapt towards the building from the window. In his hurry, Zabuza had completely noticed a grinning kid with goggles and a scarf seated in the back of the class.

Landing on the roof, Zabuza could see the retreating back of a tiny brat. He recognized the kid in an instant. It was the brat with the scarf and goggles that was in his class. Catching up to the kid in an instant, Zabuza lifted him up by the back of his jacket. "Where the heck do you think you're going?" Zabuza asked with a victorious and cocky tone. "Did you think you'd actually outsmart a jounin like me?" Zabuza continued as he turned the boy to face him. The sight of the boy's face was so shocking that Zabuza had dropped him.

Konohamaru's face was flipped upside down, literally. "W-what the hell?" Zabuza exclaimed in surprise when Konohamaru suddenly grins, pulling out a small ball, roughly the size of an adult's fist. _Oh shit_. Zabuza thought when he realized what the object was.

Part of the hunter-nin standard equipments was a set of tracking paintballs. These paintballs were markers for hunter-nin to leave behind marks for their squad, or to retrace their steps. What was especially special about these paintballs was the paint itself. The paint was a special paint developed for the sole purpose of tracking, thus, its company boast a guarantee of three days. Three days in which the paint won't come off, even if applied on the rocks underneath a waterfall.

Zabuza was too late to even turn around and run, when the Konohamaru before him burst into a cloud of smoke, the paintball dropping by Zabuza's feet. Suddenly several more rolled around him, as the roof tiles burst into clouds of smoke. _He made his clones __**Henge**__ into roof tiles_? Zabuza realized when he found himself surrounded. In an instant the paintballs all exploded, covering the roof and everything within a certain radius with pink paint.

"How is it, Kimimaro-nii?" Konohamaru asked through the transmitter he had. "Did you get the pictures?"

"Yes, the first stage of Operation Zabuza has been fulfilled, what prank will we start on next?"

A/N: Well I don't know how else to write this, but Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi and Kimimaro's prank spree begins. I think I might just end this prank arc here and now because frankly, I don't and cannot think of what other pranks to write. I might just start a new arc in this mini-story.


End file.
